


My Hero Academy: Lethal Hero

by Zillafire101



Category: Godzilla - All Media Types, Venom (Movie 2018), 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - My Hero Academia Fusion, Body Horror, Crossover, First Crush, Inspired by Venom (Movie 2018), Midoriya Izuku has the Venom Symbiote (Marvel), Original Character(s), Other, Possessive Venom Symbiote (Marvel), Protective Venom Symbiote (Marvel)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-09
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:06:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 35
Words: 218,452
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22181521
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zillafire101/pseuds/Zillafire101
Summary: Izuku Midoriya never seemed to have a Quirk, for many years. Until one day in middle school, when a strange pod smashed into a building on his way to school. Since then, a strange figure has appeared to be helping him work towards being a Hero.That figure is Venom.Though problems have appeared for them both, Izuku strives to become a hero with everything he has, even if Venom has a strong desire for brains and flesh. And chocolate.Unfortunately for them both, the Symbiote isn't the only one that made their way to earth...
Relationships: Himiko Toga & Carnage Symbiote (Marvel), Midoriya Izuku & Venom Symbiote (Marvel), Midoriya Izuku/Uraraka Ochako, Shigaraki Tomura & Riot Symbiote (Marvel), Uraraka Ochako & Scream Symbiote (Marvel)
Comments: 210
Kudos: 363





	1. Two Become One.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku and Venom begin their working relationship, and work towards the goal of fighting crime and picking foods they both can enjoy as a couple.

Izuku trudged along the backroads of Tokyo, practically dragging his feet on his way home. The young boy walked along, the rest of the streets and sidewalks almost deserted. His head was down, smoke still slightly rising off his body from a particular thrashing by certain bullies he had to deal with. It never seemed to get easier, being the one Quirkless kid in his entire grade, left at the tender mercies of Bakugou and his gang of sycophants.

It was days like this when he wondered about giving up on his dream of being a hero. Ever since he had first seen All Might himself debut for the world, and turned out to be the Number One Hero everyone would look up, Izuku had desired to be like him, to become a hero others could look up to. It was somewhat foolish, he knew. No Hero in the world, ever since the agencies and regulations had started, there had never, ever been a Quirkless hero.

Izuku kept along, head still low. Perhaps he should just give up on his hero dreams. If all he had to look forward to throughout middle school and high school was Kacchan and his groupies’ relentless jeering and bullying, then this dream of his wasn’t worth it. He kept along, walking around some of the outer limits of the city, buildings that were left mostly abandoned and broken down from the days of the anarchy caused by the first Quirk users. Such areas were often untouched, as the people moved into the inner city and began to rebuild. These areas were usually left for the poorer communities, and especially rife with villain hide-outs and criminals.

Izuku, however, had little choice but to go through here. The routes he usually took were blocked out by a large scale battle between 3 villains that had snatched a purse and accelerated things with a number of heroes. As such, Izuku had to take this route, and given his low spirits, he had little time to really worry about the strange feeling of being watched. And indeed, he was.

So busy had everyone been with the villains, no one noted a strange object burn through the air and crash into one of the corner buildings, a small little shanty, crushed and splintered to pieces, small fires raging along the wooden structure. He stopped for a moment to look at the destroyed shop, taken aback by the damage done. He looked around for a moment, as something black and oily crawled out of the wreckage, almost without a noise crawling over the various broken pieces of wood and shattered metal, carefully avoiding the flames and smoke, as it zeroed in on the young boy before it, whose eyes were cast upwards.

The slimy creature did not have long. The fires, smoke and the atmosphere of this world would kill it sooner or later. It needed a host, food and to hopefully contact the rest of the Infiltration Unit and plan out their return to their homeworld, and bringing them to here. But first thing was first. A host.

The creature scampered a little closer, mass shifting and twisting about on itself, as it studied the nearest human. There were no others, no others close enough, so bonding to it’s central nervous system would be easy enough, but it would’ve preferred someone older. Sub-Adult and child hosts were infamously unstable, especially as they grew into adulthood and began to grow and change, not to mention it would make the need for food and consumption much higher then an adult as well. The Symbiote would’ve narrowed it’s eyes if it had any.

It was either this or dying alone on this disgusting, dirty world.

It shifted about, as the child turned to walk away, and quickly latched onto the back of his left leg, barely getting on before it was out of range. The Future Host stopped, looking around slightly, as the Symbiote crawled up further, before stopping. The child seemed unaware, and continued onwards, as the Symbiote crawled into it’s back and seeped towards it’s ears. If it could bind with the spine and the rest of the nervous system, it would be truly safe on this world, for a moment at least. It began to crawl it’s way into the child’s body, as the kid hurried along. Hopefully, the crash of it’s capsule into the building would distract and keep others away, just long enough for it’s future host to get them home.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The walk home was uneventful, but Izuku could not help and shake the feeling he was being watched somehow, that something, some other was near him ever since he saw that strange crash. It didn’t leave even after he sat down with his mother to eat, as he put on a brave face for her and talked about his day, glossing over the bullying and ridicule, and his trek in the more dangerous parts of the city. He really didn’t want to worry her. He practically inhaled all the food in front of him, and after cleaning everything up, went into the bathroom to wash up.

The moment he closed the door, something cold and slimy sprang from his back, slipped around his throat and shoulders. He could barely breath, much less cry out for help, before the oily substance jammed itself down his throat, and seeped deep within his body. He gagged and coughed up in terror, struggling to get the thing off him, clawing at it, only for his fingers to slide through and off the slimy thing’s form. It slide down and finished it’s work, as his eyes rolled in the back of his head, and he lurched over, blackness awaiting him.  
\\\\\\\\\\\  
Izuku awoke awhile after, shaking slightly, as he looked around in confusion. He couldn’t remember much, but he distinctly could taste something...wrong in his mouth, and could feel it in the pit of his stomach. He went in and started his bath, and quickly got washed up, finishing up as quickly as he could. After brushing himself off, he saw something out of the corner of his eyes, something large and black slithering within the mirror. He quickly turned, jumping slightly. He looked in the mirror closely, taking a deep breath before shaking it off. He was just seeing things, it had been a long day. He just needed to sleep.

“Izuku are you alright?” His mother called from the living room.

“Yeah, yeah, sorry I took so long.” He said. “Just kinda tired out from today.”

“Well, get some sleep, ok?” She answered, still sounding nervous. “I don’t want you getting hurt.”

“I’ll be fine.” He said.

He went into his room, closing it, as he got his sleepwear on, and prepared to go over his class notes and materials again.

“This is your room?” A deep voice snarled, resounding from everywhere and nowhere at the same time. “Quite...odd.”

Izuku yelped, looking around slightly. “Who said that?”

No one replied, as he looked around, slightly terrified, before taking a deep breath. “It’s fine, it’s fine. I’m just going crazy.”

“No you’re not.” The Deep voice growled again. “I am here with you.”

He looked around in shock, eyes darting about, as sweat trickled from his neck and back. Someone was here, he was sure of that, but who they were, and what they wanted he couldn’t be sure. His mind flashed back to the strange liquid in the bathroom, the icky black slime that wormed into his body. Had it been a horrible nightmare? A hallucination brought on by smoke inhalation.

He looked in surprise as several strands blackened, slimy cords extended from his back, wrapping and intertwinning around themselves, and extending out from his body, as several them took a strange, vaguely reptilian shape, large fangs dominating it’s maw, a twisted grin on it’s face and thin, cold white eyes studying him like a predator.

“Hello Izuku, it’s good we finally get to meet...face-to-face, so to speak.” The creature hissed, as it twisted about around him, like a serpent.

“Who and what are you?” He asked, voice low and terrified.

“I am Venom, and you are mine.” Venom stated, leaning in close. “You are a loser, but you will make a good host.”

Izuku wasn’t sure whether he should be terrified or disappointed. ‘Even this thing thinks I’m a loser.’

“We are here to feed, but I need a ride.” Venom said, winding around to the other side of his body. “You need me just as much as I need you.”

“Wha...What do you mean?”

“I am in your head, you want to have powers correct, be something useful?” Venom replied. “If you cooperate, we will achieve that, and so much more.”

“What can you do?” Izuku asked, shaking in terror.

“Oh, you will have to wait and see.” Venom said, a hint of mischief in his barritone voice. “Just remember, cooperate.”

“Alright, I...I guess I don’t have much choice.” He stated.

“Good. We will accomplish much in the coming years, Midoriya.” Venom said, nodding slightly, as he receeded back into Izuku’s body.

Izuku was left kneeling in his room, unsure of what had just happened, as he struggled to his feet.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The following day, Izuku awoke, as he rose from his bed, groaning slightly, as he cracked his arms and stretched, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He struggled into the closet, pulling out his uniform as Venom’s voice sounded off in his ears.

“We need food Izuku.” He commented.

“Yeah, we’ll get breakfast.” Izuku muttered, rolling his eyes. He had hoped Venom had been a hallucination on his part.

“No, not just breakfast, large meals.” Venom remarked. “You will need a stronger body for me to use, and I need to fuel myself.”

“Alright.” Izuku stated. “Anything I should know.”

“If we are to be...partners...then you will need to know my weaknesses.” Venom stated, as Izuku got dressed, carefully securing his belt and uniform. “High frequency noises will damage us, potentially kill us and at least separate us, which will cause you damage, especially your heart and nerves. Fire is also a difficult hurtle. I also require a chemical in the brain to sustain myself.”

“Brain?” Izuku stated in shock, looking in the mirror in horror.

“If I don’t have flesh, I will have to turn on your body.” Venom warned, before making a sound like he was licking his lips. “By the way, we should eat soon. Your heart and lungs are looking...delectable.”

Izuku groaned slightly, as he trudged into the living room. This “partnership” was looking less and less appealing by the second. He wasn’t even sure if this was really someone who was gonna help him, or some weird parasite that had latched onto him for a free meal.

“So...where did you come from.” Izuku asked, as he made his way into the kitchen.

“Kylntar. My world. Very hostile.” Venom said simply, sounding just a tad scared. “I do not miss it.”

“Why?”

“...No reason.” Venom stated quickly, in a rather cagey. “I prefer to travel is all.”

Izuku wasn’t so sure about that, but shrugged it off. If Venom wanted to talk, he would talk. He knew he couldn’t force it out of him, so he’d just have to accept that his ‘partner’ would be a little distant about somethings. When he was ready, he’d open up.

He made his way into the kitchen and began to prepare breakfast. His mother had left for work early, and he usually was efficient enough to prepare and ready things himself. Though, now with Venom hanging around, he assumed he was gonna have to prepare a meal for two. 

“Are you sure we can’t go hunting down a criminal or something?” Venom suggested, appearing from his back again. “No one will miss a thug or two.”

“We’re not eating people.” Izuku said, looking at him in shock.

“I gotta eat too.” Venom grumbled in agitation. “You want me to just sit here and wither away?”

“I’ll figure something out.” Izuku said nervously, secretly not wanting to take the path Venom was suggesting. The idea of eating anyone just terrified him to his core.

Their meal was silent, as he listened along to Present Mic’s radio show, eating his toast and other pieces of the meal he had gathered for the two to eat.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Izuku made his way out into the streets and began to make his way to the Middle School, as Venom manifested as an extra head, extending form his back. Izuku’s eyes widened in surprise, as he tried to get him to hide back inside….wherever he went.

“What are you doing out?” Izuku demanded, voice low and stern, as some people’s eyes darted to them, before continuing onwards with their day-to-day business.

“Relax, Deku.” He hissed with a slightly wider grin. “Think, everyone will think I’m just your Quirk. Whose gonna care?”

“I get that, but for years, I’ve never had a Quirk.” He remarked. “What if someone notices.”

“You’re just a late bloomer.” Venom whispered, as they continued on. “Don’t panic so easy.”

“I’m not sure that’s smart...” Izuku remarked, before raising an eyebrow. “How did you know about Kaachan’s nickname for me?”

“I am in your head.” Venom stated. “You don’t seem to get that part do you?”

There was silence for a moment, as Venom lingered for a moment, before turning it’s head to study the passers-by. Izuku couldn’t tell if he was sizing up future meals, or simply trying to not get under his skin.

“I can cease calling you that.” Venom stated, as the two continued.

“No, it’s fine.” Izuku stated, as Venom retreated into his body. “We should get to class.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Izuku walked along, reaching the front doors to the school, where there weren’t many people out yet, or arriving here. He made his way up the stairs, before hearing a foot stomp down behind him. He froze slightly.

“Deku.” Bakugou’s voice stated behind, rarely icy and low.

“Kaachan.” Izuku greeted quietly. “What, are you…?”

“What the hell is this Pomeranian doing here?” Venom demanded, appearing from Izuku’s body, as Bakugou’s eyes widened only slightly in surprise. “We should ignore him, Midoriya.”

“What the hell is that?” Bakugou asked, looking at the extra head in revolution. Izuku couldn’t blame him.

“This is my Quirk.” Izuku said, as though he couldn’t believe it himself. Partially because he still couldn’t. “He came around yesterday.” 

“A second head is all you got? That really is pathetic.” Bakugou muttered, shaking his head dismissively. “So that whole thing of you being Quirkless was a lie huh?”

Izuku saw his hands start to smoke and heat up, as he backed up reflexively. Venom gave him one sideways smile, before retreating into his body.

“I doubt you’ll be any kind of hero with that.” Bakugou grabbed him by the collar. “Don’t forget, I’m the only one coming out this shithole with any chance, got it?”

Black goo spread throughout Izuku’s body, as Venom took control, his body mass increasing, as his height slowly went up, until he stood the height of an average adult male, with the muscle to match, as Venom’s twisted grin and head snapped and bent around him, claws extending from his fingers, as multiple jutted from their jaws. He narrowed his hate-filled white eyes in disdain. This body was mostly black, and glowed with slime and goo, bits and flecks of white shined from his body.

“We are no longer your victim, Kaachan.” Venom growled, forcibly removing Bakugou’s hand, as he silently cursed the heat rising from it. “You may be the strongest here, but we will become more then we were before.”

“This changes nothing Deku!” He shouted defiantly, completely unaffected by Venom’s appearance. “I’ll surpass you, even if you were lying about your Quirk this whole time!”

Venom began back to break apart and retreat away, Izuku’s form shrinking back to normal. The last of the blackened, slimy tendrils and tentacles slipped and retreated back into his body, as he shifted his shoulders. Bakugou stood completely still, fists clenched, eyes bloodshot and wide. Izuku almost shuddered at the sight. Even after seeing Venom at full height and all, he was still sure Bakugou wanted a fight. Especially now that he thought Deku had a Quirk.

Izuku knew Bakugou thought he looked down at him, hence part of the aggression. What was Bakugou going to do now that Izuku had revealed his “Quirk”.

He turned to leave and head for his classroom, as Venom’s head appeared beside him. “Do not be worried about him, he’s but a child compared to what we can do.”

“And what can we do?” Izuku asked him, glancing down at him.

Venom thought for a moment, before his permanent grin widened to Izuku. “I think...whatever we want.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The following years after were a rush of activity for Izuku, one part of it spent studying and getting used to telling people that Venom was his “quirk”, while the other part was training his body. Venom had insisted. They couldn’t fight and be heroes and all, if Izuku had a weak body, and he couldn’t rely on Venom his whole life. The training and weight lifting lead to him developing a more muscular frame and build to the young man. Though it had not been easy, as he went on a rampage for several months, targeting criminals to devour their brains while Midoriya slept.

Needless to say, things became a little more icy between them, and they had to lay low and keep away from authorities because of the legendary “Lethal Protector” now running around.

Much to Izuku’s surprise, however, he found a great alternatives to brains in the weeks following Venom’s hunger-induced rampage. Chocolate apparently had similar properties and chemicals to that found in the brains Venom needed. It kept him in check, at least for a while. 

Many thing still bothered Izuku slightly, Venom’s secrecy for one, and the other, of course, the fact Venom had used him to murder and kill countless criminals. Villains they may have been, but it was still against the law. And deeply immoral. He couldn’t let any of that show. Anyone who found out what Venom could and would do if left unchecked was too dangerous.

Things mostly stayed the same. People were amazed by his new and smart-mouthed Quirk, Bakugou’s bullying calmed down and curved just slightly, and Izuku’s dreams of being a hero seemed within sight. Venom seemed to grow more restless as the years went on, but

As High School neared the end, Venom was of course his usual talkative self. And as always, crass.

“Why do we have to listen to this pencil-pushing idiot?” Venom stated, voice bubbling within Izuku’s ears like boiling lava. “We get it, good test scores and that crap. Let us go already.”

‘Quiet.’ Izuku ordered mentally. ‘Or no Tator Tots tonight.’

Venom grumbled in agitation, but said nothing else.

“I don’t know why you’re wasting your time with these losers, teach.” Bakugou’s voice roared like an inferno in the middle of class. “I’m the real deal, the rest of these losers wouldn’t cut it as side-kicks to a third-rate clean-up hero crew.”

Venom’s head appeared from Izuku’s shoulders, as he narrowed his eyes at the boasting student, as Izuku tried to shoot him a look to be quiet, which Venom of course did not listen to, being Venom.

“Ha! Hot air from both your sweat, and your maw.” Venom remarked with a wry smile. “That will surely burn the competition out.”

Bakugou turned on his heel, eyes wide with rage as he glared down at Izuku. “Keep your slimy, disgusting Quirk in line Deku.”

“Ah yes, Izuku, you’ll be going to UA too, right?” The teacher asked. “That is where you apply right.”

“Ugh, right.” He said nervously, as Bakugou fixed him with a death glare. “That’s the plan.”

“Wow, really?” One classmate said.

“You two have the best Quirks here!” Another said with a grin. “If anyone can be heroes it’s you two.”

Bakugou’s nostrils flared at the sound of that, as he fixed the offending student with a rancorous glare, fists shaking. He narrowed his eyes, turning his glare on Izuku and Venom.

“You’re never going anywhere Deku, no matter what.” He snarled at him, before turning quickly away, crossing his arms in front of him as he silently fumed in rage.

Izuku sat down stiffly, as Venom bobbed happily for a moment, before turning to him. Perhaps sensing his host’s foul mood now, Venom retreated back inside his body. Izuku did not want to start anything, and just wanted to get through the day quietly, not start anything with Kacchan. Now Bakugou was in a very foul mood, more so then usual.  
Ever since Venom had first injected himself into his life, and passed as his Quirk, Bakugou seemed angrier then usual at that. He could never figure out why. Bakugou looked down at him for not having a Quirk, now he did and he still couldn’t stand him.

“He envies us.” Venom remarked. “We are a great pair, you and I.”

‘No, he doesn’t.’ Izuku thought. Bakugou was still good to be jealous. ‘Besides, you’ve done enough today. No tots tonight.’

Venom seemed to stiffen slightly, withdrawing away from Izuku’s mind, and not saying a word. It seemed to be a response to not just the lack of his favorite food, but his host’s agitation. Venom wasn’t exactly sensitive to his host’s feelings, but still tried his best to not overstep his bounds.

The rest of class flew by without much more incidents, before the bell rang, much to Izuku’s surprise. Everything seemed to go so slowly, it surprised class was finished already. He began to pile away his books and notes into his bookbag. His mind was elsewhere, and he didn’t notice Bakugou standing over him, or the two thugs and lackies that followed him standing behind Izuku.

“We’re surrounded.” Venom warned. 

‘I know.’ Izuku thought, completely tired out and already dreading any of this.

“Listen Deku, you go anywhere near the hero course, I’ll beat you til you can’t stand.” Bakugou growled, grabbing his shoulder as smoke rose from it.

“Good luck with that.” Izuku said with a roll of his eyes, as Venom wrapped it’s mass around his left arm, as he grabbed Kacchan’s wrist and forcibly removed it, with some difficulty. Even with Venom’s enhanced strength, Bakugou was not a weakling by any means. “Just leave me alone, alright?”

Bakugou leaned uncomfortably close to his face, eyes bloodshot and burning with rage. “You’ve looked down at me while hiding your Quirk, and think I won’t get you back for it?”

“I haven’t.” Izuku stated, keeping his eyes focused straight ahead. “It’s just too complicated to explain.”

Bakugou glared at him, Izuku never meeting his eyes, as a moment of silence passed between them. Bakugou’s lackies stood in tense silence, as the two watched them in tense silence, flinching as Bakugou spoke.

“You show up to the course and I’ll end you myself.” As he pulled away from Izuku’s grip and motioned for his sycophants to follow.

“Looking forward to it.” Izuku said with a roll of his eyes.

Venom slipped away it’s mass from his hand, retreating back into his body, as his voice sounded again.

“You could just stand up to him. Y’know, beat the shit outta him without doing anything...permanent.” Venom suggested with hint of malicious glee in his voice.

“No, out of the question.” Izuku answered aloud. He knew Venom loved to fight, craved a battle, but he didn’t want to indulge his bloodlust, not too much.

“Fine, but I’ll be here when you want to…push back.” Venom suggested, sounding a bit too eager for Izuku’s tastes.

He grabbed his stuff, and left out the door. Again, for the briefest moment, he questioned whether having Venom here was worth it, but shut that down. In spite of everything, he’d achieve his dream of being a hero with the Symbiote with him, even if he had to deal with some very negative traits.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Izuku made his way through the streets, heading home, his shoulders sagging slightly. Venom was silent for a while, as they passed by another hero-villain battle. As they walked along, his phone buzzed slightly in his pocket. He clicked it open, seeing an alert from the police of a nearby villain on the loose, and for people to be on the alert.

“Oh, a villain.” Venom hissed in excitement, springing from his body. “Perhaps we can pick out some snacks if the police and Pros can’t get him?”

“No Venom, we’re not getting involved.” Izuku muttered, rolling his eyes. “We’ll be getting chocolate on the way home.”

“You seem down. Something eating at your guts? Other then me?” Venom said, clicking his teeth slightly, swaying slightly.

“You keep trying to start fights with Kacchan. I’ve told you to knock that off.” Izuku said wearily.

“He doesn’t seem to share such ideals, Deku.” Venom replied, moving his head back slightly, his version of a shrug when he had no arms available for use. “Perhaps your admiration is misplaced...”

Izuku simply shook his head, as he and Venom continued on, not wanting to talk about it any further. The two walked under a bridge, the darkness obscuring them, as something dark slithered near him. Izuku barely had time to turn around before something wet and alive in the most unnatural way enveloped his body and began to inch towards his body. He stiffened and struggled, giving a gagging scream as something slimy and wet jammed itself into his mouth.

“Just relax kid.” A gurgling voice, like it was spoken underwater sounded all around him. “I just need your body for a bit to make an escape. This won’t hurt...for long.”

Izuku tried to say something, only as the sludge filled into his body. He struggled to breath, before something black and slimey bubbled up from his body and spread throughout his frame, rippling throughout his body, as his frame expanded outwards, muscle and mass added on, claws breaching through his fingers, as an alien face cracked and slipped over his own face, teeth bared in a permanent, hideous smile. Venom ripped himself free of the creature, ducked and rolled out of the reach of the creature, growling at him.

“I’m afraid this body is taken.” He growled, his booming voice echoing in the bridge, as the being rippled and swirled, moving backwards in shock.

Venom grinned at the sight of his terror, before spitting a hunk of his body up, and slowly approaching the being. Even with barely a mouth to speak of, and only two large eyes, Venom could see the fear in his expression, smell the terror rolling off like a flower’s flagrance. 

“I don’t have your head to feast on, but I’ll make do.” Venom growled, slowly marching towards the Villain. “Your eyes, they look rather delectable. I’ve never thought to sample them. One of my offspring finds them delicious.”

“What the hell are you?” The Sludge Villain muttered, still frozen in terror.

His tongue slipped out of his jaws as he approached the Sludge Villain, before he stopped, stepping aside, as something crashed into the ground beside them, Venom’s eyes widening as he almost jumped back in surprise. A blur of golden hair and heavy muscle moved past him, a massive gust of wind nearly knocking them both out, and sending them to the ground, as the sludge villain was quickly dissipated. Venom slowly got to his feet, shaking his semi-reptilian head in shock, before the mountain of muscle turned to them.

“Now then, who is this one here with me.” A voice boomed, as a mountain of a man appeared before Izuku. “Are you with this guy?”

The familiar, grinning form of All Might stood a few inches taller then Venom, but exuded all the more power. Even the parasite, without Izuku’s mentally holding back and all, was taken aback and seemed hesitant on aggravating the world’s greatest hero. The Great Hero held a coca-cola bottle, with the squirming form of the Sludge Villain inside. Venom’s face partially peeled back, as Izuku’s face revealed itself.

“No, no! Venom’s my….Quirk here!” He said, holding up his clawed hands to stop All Might. “I only activated him because I thought I’d die!”

All Might put the bottle in the back of his pocket, before tossing Izuku his hero journal. The young man’s eyes bulged out of his head in shock. Had he dropped it? How had All Might grabbed it so quickly? Venom retreated from view, going back into his young host’s body and disappearing from sight. Izuku paged through it, before finding All Might’s page and finding the hero’s signature penned on it. Shocked, Izuku immediately bowed.

“Thank you! Thank you sir!” He said, before yammering on about how the autograph would become a priceless family possession of unimaginable importance and would be treasured forever. 

“You know, I’m impressed how well you handled yourself.” All Might said, cutting through his monologue. “But something’s bothering me, Young Man.”

Izuku fell silent, as Venom’s head twisted and snapped out of his side, watching All Might in silence, as the hero gestured to the Symbiote.

“That Quirk of yours, reminds me a bit of the Lethal Protector that was prowling the streets a few months back.” All Might, said, scratching his chin as his smile softened slightly. “You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?”

“No, of course not. Venom likes to trash talk, but he’s mostly harmless.” Izuku said quickly, holding up his hands quickly.

All Might watched him for a moment, before giving him a warm pat on the shoulder. “Well, probably just similar Quirks. You stay safe, alright? Keep practicing with ‘Venom’, you’re on your way to being a hero in no-time.”

All Might jumped away, flying through the skies, as Venom turned to Izuku. “I don’t think he believes us.”

“You had to go on a rampage, you ravenous freak.” Izuku snapped, as he and his Symbiote began the walk home. “Don’t you think people would notice? You ate several criminals’ heads.”

“Fuel in the tank.” Venom merely muttered, head tilting backwards.

“We need to keep a low profile.” Izuku grumbled in agitation. “So don’t do anything stupid until we get into UA.”

“We should just go vigilante.” Venom suggested. “We’ll get further, given our MO.”

“I want to inspire others, not eat them.” Izuku grumbled. “Got it?”

“As you wish.” Venom hissed, mouth twisting into a frown, despite the grin. “You’re my ride after all.”

The two looked off to the distance, ready for what happened next.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here it is, one of my first fics. Not sure what inspired it. Either my love of the movie and it's silly but fun atmosphere, but I've been working on this for a few months now. More chapters will come rapid-fire after this one, up to five I think.
> 
> Inspired a bit by Rest_In_rip's Leviathan fanfic.


	2. First Test

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku and Venom begin to get a hang of their combined abilities against very, very large threats.

Izuku approached the massive building, the entrance to UA, his mouth agap as he watched it in shock. Venom’s head twisted and turned, springing from his shoulder, as he looked at it in slight wonder. He didn’t even notice the cool autumn air, nor the other people hurrying inside to get in the warm building.

“It’s certainly large.” Venom quipped slightly, before looking to Izuku. “I thought it’d be bigger.”

“I can’t believe this is UA!” Izuku yammered in shock. “I mean, I’ve always dreamed of coming here, but this is so unreal and...”

He continued on, as Venom’s head bobbed slightly, before the creature made a growling sound and hissed.

“Come on, Deku, we need to get moving.” Venom grumbled in agitation. “Quit nerding out.”

“Sorry, sorry.” Izuku muttered sheepishly, marching up to the open gates with the other students.

Some of the students eyed Venom, but most simply carried, as the small, blackish serpentine creature twisted and turned about, observing the other students, before turning to his host’s ear.

“So, what is the plan, Deku?” Venom asked.

“I don’t know, there are bots I think?” Izuku muttered to his companion. “So probably just smashing things up right?”

“We can do that rather easily.” Venom said, his fang-filled grin widening. 

“And I’ve got the written exam covered.” Izuku replied with a little smile.

Venom bobbed it’s head slightly, looking around for a moment. He seemed slightly taken aback by everything around it. Izuku raised an eyebrow at his Symbiote’s behavior.

“What you thinking Venom?” He asked.

“Trying to see which ones we’ll have to deal with.” Venom said, turning to his host. “Only a few can get in, after all.”

Izuku laughed nervously. “Well, it’s just an entrance exam. We’re not gonna hurt them, alright?”

“Hmm.” Venom hissed to himself, as Izuku gave him a weary look, but said nothing. Venom knew not to hurt innocent people. Even in his rampage, he stayed away from civilians. Izuku hoped he’d keep that up.

Izuku made their way up along the path. The two walked along, Venom’s head looking around once more, before they heard a familiar marching behind him. He turned, before his eyes widened in surprise slightly. It had been a long time since the two had last seen each other.

“Oh, hey Kacchan!” He greeted cheerfully.

“Even look at me and I’ll light you on fire.” Katsuki snapped, as Venom made a small shriek, and lurched backwards.

Izuku himself jumped out of his way, holding up his hands as his eyes bugged out. “HEYGOODLUCKOUTTHEREOK? OK!”

He watched Katsuki walk by, smoke rising from his body, as Izuku watched him leave, several others moving out of Bakugou’s way, as Venom looked up at his host, shaking his small head slightly.

“You are way too scared of him, given everything we can do.” Venom replied, leaning into his ear. “We’re destined for something far greater then him. Embrace it, Deku.”

Izuku took a deep breath, rolled his shoulders, and nodded. “You’re right. We can do this. I’ll become a hero, no matter what Kaachan or anyone else says.”

The young Hero Hopeful began walking along, heading down the path and towards the main doors, his head held high. As he took his step, his foot caught on a step leading to the front gates, causing him to lose his balance, and go flying into the ground.

‘I’ll guess I’ll die!’ He thought deadpan as he flew to the bottom, face-first into the stone pathway.

He prepared for the horrific face-first slam into the bricks, and the horrific embarrassment and injury on his first alone. Even Venom tensed up within his brain and body, coiling around within like a serpent, as Izuku shut his eyes tight before the impact.

Before he could, his body came to a stop, freezing right then and there, and suspended in mid-air, like his entire body was being held by wires. He stopped for a moment, looking down, before yelling in shock, struggling to move, before a hand gently gripped his shoulder, and righted him, putting him on his feet, and releasing him. A girl around his age, standing to his left, pressed her fingers together, as the feeling of weightlessness left him.

He turned, to see the girl, with shoulder-length brown hair, cheerful blue eyes, and a small smile on her face. He found himself at a loss for words, as Venom appeared out from his body, looking her over, his slated white eyes narrowed.

“Sorry I used my Quirk on you.” She said, pressing her palms together with a wider smile. “I figured it was bad luck to start the day with a trip.”

“Thank you.” Venom replied, bowing his head slightly in a nod, as Izuku stood there slack jawed. Venom almost wanted to roll his eyes, if he could. ‘Never change, Deku.”

“Anyway, I gotta go, and I guess you do to!” She said with a bubbly laugh, as she waved and ran off. “Good luck!”

“Oh my god.” Izuku stammered as he watched her leave. “I just talked to a girl!”

Venom wanted to say something about that, before stopping himself. He didn’t want to ruin his Host’s good spirits, so simply chuckled to himself. “I like her. We should pay attention to her.”

Izuku nodded, running off to the frontgates, and into the wider academy awaiting them.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Izuku found getting to the auditorium rather easy. It wasn’t just following the mobs and crowds of other students, but also Venom’s ability to locate large bodies of people in an area around them. Though the school was throwing him off today, he was quite proud of himself when they arrived, and took their assigned seat from the invitation letter.

“So what now?” Venom asked, having withdrawn into Izuku’s body and out of sight, not liking to appear within such an enclosed area. 

“Just wait, and don’t do anything to draw attention.” Izuku muttered, looking around, as he plopped down in his seat. “We don’t want any negative attention.”

“Got it.” Venom hissed, falling silent for a moment, as Izuku waited, going through his backpack, and putting notes and his books in order as he waited.

He didn’t even noticed Venom tense up within his body, or Bakugou sit down beside him without a word. His former classmate glared at him, before focusing ahead.

As Izuku finished up his organizing, the stage before the students opened before them, revealing the Pro-Hero down below. He was dressed in a leather jacket, with shades over his eyes, blond greased into two large tufts above his head, and fingerless gloves along his hands.

“HOW YOU DOING STUDENTS?!” He shouted, his voice almost shrill with excitement.

Izuku yelled in agony immediately, grabbing his ears, as spines and tiny tentacles of blacks sprang and jumped from his body, as Venom’s own screams of agony joined his host’s. Many of the students turned and looked at Izuku, many terrified of his reaction, or mystified by it. One of the students to his right, a tall, atheltic young man, with combed-back, groomed hair and wire-frame glasses.

“Excuse me, sir, are you alright?” The Athletic boy asked, slightly annoyed by how Izuku was acting during a course.

Present Mic stopped to look at him, as Izuku fell silent, his breath heavy, eyes unfocused, as sweat drenched most of his body. He shook heavily, as he looked up, his vision still blurry and unfocused.

“I...I’m sorry...” He muttered, struggling to raise his voice. “My...my Quirk...is sensitive to high sound...”

“Sorry my dude!” Present Mic shouted, his voice softer, apologetic, but still excitable. “I didn’t realize it, I’ll keep my voice more in check.”

“Disgusting.” Bakugou muttered. “Disgusting and pathetic.”

“Hey! Don’t speak down to one of your fellow future students!” Glasses shouted at Bakugou. “Don’t look down at him for a shortcoming.”

Glasses leaned in towards Izuku, grabbing his shoulder. “Are you alright, do you require medical attention?”

“I’m good.” Izuku gulped with difficulty, as his vision returned to normal. 

Venom made a primal, gurgling growl within Izuku’s mind. “I...I hate that creature!”

‘Calm down Venom, it’s fine.’ Izuku thought, as Glasses withdrew to his seat, still eyeing Izuku uncertianlly.

He tried to concentrate on the rest of Present Mic’s words, but still was having difficulty from the loud noise and sound that had hit him and Venom. He was still breathing heavily. Venom had withdrawn from making any commentary, as Izuku struggled to focus on Mic’s words. He barely comprehended what he said, before the class was dismissed and told to head out. He looked around in confusion, before Glasses came up and grabbed him gently by the shoulder again.

“Excuse me, we’re heading out to the Field Tests, are you alright?” He asked, as he helped him to his feet.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m good.” Izuku managed through his teeth, following Glasses along. “You don’t have to help me.”

“It’s fine, this is hero work after all.” He replied with a grin. “The name’s Tenya Iida by the way.”

“Izuku Midoriya.” He replied, nodding his head, as Venom’s own tiny head swirled and manifested from his shoulder. “And this is Venom.”

“Hello you two.” Iida said, not missing a beat, as he guided them along. Izuku was surprised he could see a Venom and not freak out.

Iida lead him along, helping him along to the gym room. Venom seemed more silent then usual, as though he was still recovering from the injuries it took from the Present Mic shout. Izuku wasn’t sure if he could keep going with this, but kept going. Even after everything that had happened, he couldn’t give up on his dreams of being a hero.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Unlike the others, Izuku didn’t need to change. The rest of the class looked at him strangely, as he stood stiffly in the school uniform. He had recovered mostly. He looked out across the crowd, to see the girl from earlier, the one who had saved him from falling on his face. He had a lot of things to say. Perhaps he could say his thanks and start a conversation with her. He began to step forward, before his limbs stopped. He jumped slightly, before Venom’s head appeared from his side.

“Hold on Izuku, you need to hold still and focus.” Venom cautioned. “We need time to build our body back up again after the last incident.”

“A...What?” Izuku asked, rather confused by his attitude.

“You’re nerves are almost fried, and we still have to fight a bunch of...robots right?” Venom stated, looking out at the gates to the testing grounds, and the other students. “So just hold still and let me work.”

Izuku nodded slightly, still feeling rather off after everything, rubbing his eyes slightly. “Alright.”

“Besides, she needs to focus.” Venom hissed, nodding slightly. “As do you. We can’t work well together if you’re distracted.”

“Alright, gotcha.” Izuku said with a nod, as Venom withdrew back into his body. He still felt out of it, but as time went on, he began to feel more refreshed and recharged.

“We’re going to have to eat a lot to get back in shape.” Venom cautioned him in his mind. “Unless you don’t need this liver...”

Izuku opened his mouth to hold Venom back, before Present Mic’s voice shouted off again. “Alright Future Heroes, begin!”

Izuku’s eyes widened as the rest ran into the opening gates, as he sprinted after them with everything he could muster. Some eyed him sideways, already writing off the weirdo kid for his strange dress habits for a physically active course, and his response to loud noises. He looked around for a moment, as he tried to scan the replica of the city around him.

“Venom, come on!” He shouted.

“Hold on.” Venom hissed.

Izuku continued on, looking for anything to fight, as Venom bubbled inside him. He could feel the symbiote pushing and brushing against him, like something was squirming and moving just below the skin. He looked around nervously, as the time ticked on in his head. What was Venom doing now? They couldn’t take on anything or get in the course if Venom wasn’t going to come out and fight.

“Venom, come on!” Izuku shouted into the wind.

A massive machine, nearly twice Izuku’s height swung out of the corner of a building, two massive clawed arms hanging from it’s shoulders, a single red eye dominating it’s head. It slammed into the ground, focusing on Izuku.

“Target detected. Prepare for extermination.” The machine announced.

“Mask!” Izuku shouted, as Venom finally responded.

“Copy!” Venom hissed, bursting alive and into the air, expanding and enhancing Izuku’s body into a muscular frame of blackened muscle and claws.

Venom’s fang-filled grin appeared, as he clenched his fists in preparation. Though he staggered slightly, before slamming his foot down and regaining his balance in preparation for the coming battle. He bared his fangs, opening his jaws with a savage growl of glee.

The machine prepared to attack him, before a blazing beam of blue energy, fizzling and sparkling like a burst of energy from a star. Venom recoiled back in surprise, as the machine was almost completely vaporized, before falling apart and into pieces, smoke rising from it’s remains. Venom and Izuku gapped at it in surprise, before looking up to see the source of the beam attack.

“Thanks, moni mi!” A voice called, as Izuku looked over in shock, to see a thin, blond kid around his age, with a small smile on his face. “I couldn’t have gotten that without you. Thanks.”

The Kid ran off, as Venom shook his head slightly. “Is he Spanish?”

“Let’s find a robot.” Izuku commanded, as Venom bounded off, smashing through the buildings and getting to atop one of the building. 

The two looked around, Venom’s eyes scanning the area, before spotting a machine still in one place. He jumped off, clawed hands held out in front of him, before smashing down into the machine fist first. The machine barely had time to react before it was crumbled like a massive tin can. Venom stood up shaking himself off, as his mouth split into a slightly wider grin.

“One point.” Izuku said. “We can’t pass with just one.”

Venom looked around, walking around for a bit to try and find something, anything to fight, but could detect nothing but warm bodies and humans that would’ve made a nice quick snack. Nothing else could be picked up by his senses. 

“I don’t detect anything.” Venom muttered in reply.

“What are we going to do?” Izuku shouted in reply, panicking. “I...I can’t fail!”

“We won’t, Deku.” Venom said, bounding away, before coming to a stop, his white eyes narrowed as he slowly looked around. “Keep calm.”

Venom stood still, almost completely motionless, as the other students watched him in shock and awe, the vaguely reptilian creature slowly rising to his full height once more.

“What are we doing?” Izuku said, still panicking. “We need to find more bots!”

Venom turned his head down the street, to the left, eyes still narrowed. “Something is wrong Izuku...”

Suddenly, a massive foot crashed down into the earth, shaking the replica city’s streets and the students within. The machine rounded the corner with another lumbering step, as Izuku gasped in shock. Most of the others took only a moment to look over the massive machine, before running off in the other direction. Not only was it too big to fight, but there were easier points to get from the smaller bots before time ran out. It’s massive clawed hand knocked over one of the building, utterly pulverizing it into small fragments of rock and metal.

“Should we run too?” Izuku asked, voice shaking in fright.

“I think not.” Venom said simply, pointing to the girl from earlier. “You like her, no?”

It was indeed the girl who had saved him from getting his face smashed in by the street, now pinned under a piece of the building from earlier. Izuku gasped, as he looked around to see no rushing in to save her, or even noticing them. 

“We have to do this!” Izuku commanded, as the two bounded off towards the massive skyscrapper sized mecha. “You can do this right?”

“I might, but it will overtax us. Expect to be asleep for a long time, and hungry when you awaken.” Venom advised, as his hand claws tore apart the street beneath him with every stride.

“Don’t care, just save her Venom!” Izuku repeated, intense and focused.

Venom grunted in repsonse, before briefly standing and swinging his right arm out, a long strand of his biomass swinging out and sticking onto the machine’s right leg, before he swung his other arm upwards, in the direction of the machine’s massive clawed limb. Another massive strand of tissue-made rope extending out, and enveloped part of the machine’s fingers. Venom crossed his arms, growling and cursing slightly, as the machine struggled to get free and crush the Symbiote-Hero. It lifted it’s free arm up, intending to crush him, before Venom roared in response, and pulled back with both arms with more intensity then before.

With a groan, the machine fell and was toppled, slowly falling to the ground, as yet more buildings were crushed and pulverized by it’s form, yet more pieces falling all around them. More massive chunks of masonry and rock headed right for Uraraka, as Venom sprouted another strand of biomass from his shoulder, knocking the rock pinning her under, as she scampered to her feet and ran off, before the rocks could crush her.

The machine fell to the ground, crushing most of the road beneath it, as the streets struggled to hold it’s weight. Venom retracted all the strands back into itself, before throwing his right arm to the side, and grabbing up a rock, swinging it around and over his head like a flail, before swinging it down at the machine as it disappeared into the pit it had made, the rock smashing into the head of the machine, and with the added force of Venom’s swing, combined with the damage, caused it to explode with stunning force.

Venom marched away as fire burst to life from behind him, as he threw his head back and roared to the skies. He looked around for a bit, before falling on his knees, and gradually disappearing into Izuku’s body, who fell to the ground, eyes closed tightly. The girl he had just saved rushed forward, grabbing him and gently lowering him down, as the last parts of the machine crumbled and broke apart, fires roaring behind him.

“Amazing.” One of the students said.

“All that power and noise is what does him in?”

“I can’t believe he only scored a point.” Another replied. “What the heck was he doing?”

Uraraka looked back in shock, eyes wide at the statement, the breath almost taken right out of her like she had been hit in the gut. How could someone who took down a machine like that have only destroyed one of the easier bots. Surely there was a mistake. She was about to say something, before Present Mic’s voice called over the intercoms.

“And that is it! We hoped you got all the points you needed students, because the Practical Exams are done!”

Uraraka could feel her heart sink like a stone inside her. After everything this weird boy and his Quirk had done, and he wouldn’t be able to get in. She wasn’t sure what to say, before an old, gentle voice called out.

“Everyone hold still, and don’t move. Let’s all take a deep breath, ok?” She called out, as the rest of the crowd turned to her.

The lady was very old, and short, dressed in a doctor’s coat with thick framed glasses that could’ve probably picked up even health imperfections on skincells and gray hair. The lady walked along with the help of a cane in her gloved hands, handing sweets to some of the students, and kissing some of the others, fully mending and healing the injuries in seconds. Uraraka’s eyes widened in surprise, as she watched the old lady approach.

‘That must be Recovery Girl.’ She thought, as she stayed with Izuku.

Recovery Girl hobbled over, looking him over, as she raised an eyebrow in surprise. She kneeled slightly, touching and proding his muscles and examining his bones.

“Hmm, he pulled three muscles in his arm, hyper-extended his left elbow, and tore the muscles in his lower back,” She reported, Uraraka cringed in terror at her words. “But something is healing them rapidly.”

Recovery tapped her chin slightly, before taking out four gummies, and began to prepare to feed them to Izuku, or test if he was responsive. Before either could react, Venom took over his upper body again, his night-black head splitting into a wide maw, as he snapped forward like a ravenous alligator and chopped up all four, barely chewing them, before swallowing them. Venom disappeared out of sight again, melting back into Izuku’s body, as he slowly got to his feet, dazed and confused. Uraraka made a small yelp in the back of her throat, as Recovery Girl blicked several times in disbelief.

‘Like that giant lizard from ‘84...’ Recovery Girl thought, shaking her head, before clearing her throat to speak to him.

“Excuse me, son, are you alright?” Recovery Girl asked slowly, as Izuku looked at her, his eyes distant and hollow.

“I..ugh,..yeah.” He stuttered with difficulty, before looking over at Uraraka. “Are you ok?”

He tried to walk over to her, before Recovery Girl held out her cane, stopping him. “Hold it, I need to figure out if you hurt yourself, alright?”

Izuku swallowed slightly, and nodded. Recovery Girl eyed him carefully, before holding up her fingers.

“How many am I holding up?”

“3 Fingers.” Izuku answered.

“Where are you now?”

“UA testing grounds.”

Recovery Girl nodded slightly. “You’re not having a concussion. But you do appear exhausted.”

“My Quirk needs a lot of food.” Izuku explained tiredly, legs wobbling slightly.

“Alright, don’t move about too much.” Recovery Girl said, steadying him. “We’ll get some food in you, and check you out for any other injuries.”

Izuku nodded slightly, as Venom slowly sprouted and solidified from his shoulder, shaking himself off.

“No MRIs or high noises!” Venom growled, shaking slightly like a snake ready to strike, before Izuku lifted a hand to stop him.

“Alright Venom, calm down.” Izuku said deadpan, rolling his eyes.

Recovery motioned for him to sit, before turning to the other candidates. “Alright, move along, move along. You’re all finished up here.”

She turned to Uraraka, smiling slightly. “You can go to sweety. He’ll be fine.”

Uraraka shifted uncertainty, before looking at Izuku in worry. “Are you sure?”

“He’ll be fine, just get on home now.” She said, patting Uraraka on the shoulder.

She readjusted and zipped up her tracksuit, before nodding and heading off, looking at Izuku’s dazed form, before running off.  
\\\\\\\\\\\  
Izuku spent a lot of hours being examined by Recovery Girl and her assistants and their analyzing the young hero recruit, making sure it was just exhaustion from overdoing it with his Quirk. The young hero was still rather tired out form everything, but otherwise had mostly recovered, and Venom had been able to fight back the urge to start snacking on Izuku’s organs.

Though some of the heroes that passed through the infirmary zones of the school gave him some odd looks, he didn’t mind. The young hero wasn’t put off by it, and Venom didn’t seem to mind their gaze, just happy to get something inside them and some nutrients. After a large slice of chocolate cake was handed out, Venom almost didn’t want to leave the place. Despite this genarsity, however, Izuku found himself on edge about everything.

“Do you think we passed?” Izuku muttered to Venom, as they walked away from the school, the sun now setting behind them, waving to Recovery Girl and the team.

“Hard to say.” Venom hissed slightly. 

“One point is hardly anything to write home about.” Izuku responded, focusing ahead as he began the long walk home. “I don’t know if we’ll make it in.”

“Maybe not, but perhaps being Vigilantes would be more our style.” Venom suggested with a gleeful chuckle. “Snacks would be much easier to come by.”

“We’re not doing that.” Izuku commanded. “We’re going to do this the right way.”

The Symbiote and host continued on their way, heading for home after a long and very stressful day. Whatever happened next, they had to leave up to fate from here on out.


	3. Erasure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Venom and Izuku learn for the first time that heroes dislike murderous, cannabilistic rampages.

After the Izuku’s destruction of the gigantic machine, most of the Heroes were very amazed by the strength and power he had shown, and the dedication to heroics in such a situation. All Might stood below the platform where the rest watched, dressed in a great yellow and black stripped suit, while in his muscle form. Next to him, was the skinnier, pale form of Aizawa. His scarf was wrapped around his neck, and hide everything below the nose. He focused on the reptilian creature and it’s tendrils with interest.

“You see something, Aizawa?” All Might asked, glancing at his grumpy peer.

“That kid. He’s rather similar to that Lethal Protector that was running around a few months back.” Aizawa said, lifting up his chin, and scratching his scruffy chin. “Who is that?”

“Izuku Midoriya.” A voice reported, before scratching his chin. “Funny, I thought his reports said he was Quirkless.”

“Late bloomer.” Principle Nezu replied, watching in fascination. “He definitely made up for lost time.”

“We never caught that Lethal Protector. He just disappeared...” Aizawa remarked. “Could there be a connection…?”

“The Protector was savage and uncontrolled.” Midnight remarked, adjusting her glasses. “This one’s a lot more measured in all his moves.”

“Still, it can’t be a coincidence.” Aizawa muttered, running his hand through his greasy hair. “Two similar fighting styles, almost similar Quirks, same general area.”

All Might looked as though he wanted to say something, that irritating, always beaming smile softening if just for a moment, before Nezu spoke up again after taking a long sip of tea.

“Well, I doubt it’s the Lethal Protector.” He said with his usual brand of cheer. “Why would he come waltzing right into an academic place full of heroes that would want to bring him in.”

Aizawa didn’t seem to care for that answer, but turned to the other students. “So, what the heck are we gonna do with this kid?”

Many of the teachers began to reach for small numbered signs near them, as Nezu shrugged. “Obviously, we grade his reaction to this like any other.”

Aizawa watched as most of the teachers gave him 9’s and 10’s, a passing score. His written exam scores, his one measly practical exam point, and now about 60 on the Heroic grading would let him join. Present Mic seemed quite pleased with the score, as Aizawa leaned in towards his friend.

“You really shouldn’t grade him based on guilt.” Aizawa whispered, as the heroes began to review everything.

“I kinda screwed him over before the matches even started.” Mic remarked, scratching the back of his neck. “Kid was like a zombie at the start, now look at him.”

Aizawa looked again at the replay of the various young students, each one’s technique and how they tore through each machine in their own way. Most were unrefined, or needed more training, but a lot of them were on the way to the right path. Izuku was the one that stuck out the most. His movements, while animalistic, seemed perfectly measured, like he had a sense for what was going to happen, and prepared for it accordingly. The one machine he did destroy was completely wrecked in a move that was far too careless for Aizawa’s taste. Completely flattened and smashed apart.

It was different, but he didn’t buy the words from his colleagues. He had spent months tracking the Vigilante nick-named “Jet” and called the Lethal Protector by so many. He stalked the underbelly of the city, helping the homeless, and feasting heavily on crooks and those that targeted them. Aizawa had poured through every recording of Jet in his time. He had no reason to call him a “protector”. Aizawa may have been considered blunt and unlikable for a hero, but even he had standards.

Biggest one being Aizawa didn’t chomp down on people’s heads. Or their limbs. Or whatever else caught the Protector’s fancy.

‘I don’t even think Knuckleduster was that bad.’ Aizawa thought wearily.

He had no reason to pity any of the criminals, but someone cannibalizing people, no matter their rap sheet or record, was something he would never support. And what annoyed him the most was how the Protector just…vanished. As though he had come up to eat for a bit, then disappeared into the darkness without another word. A lot of the more night-going heroes had tried to pursue them, but none seemed as determined as Eraserhead.

‘And now this kid comes in with the same fighting style, look and everything.’ Aizawa thought darkly, still glaring at the image of Venom as it worked to save Occhako. ‘It can’t be a coincidence.’

He gave an aside glance to All Might, who seemed interested in the kid as well. Did he know something? All Might was always a terrible liar compared to every other hero in existence. What connection did he have with the strange, vaguely reptilian beast rampaging about? Aizawa presumed he could wait until the school start and investigate Izuku himself.

‘Whatever students I have, I don’t want him too close to.’ He thought, as he put his hands in his pockets. ‘But if the others pass him, I’ll have to bite the bullet.’

It would at least give him a chance to keep an eye on Izuku. If he failed, there was no telling where he could run off to with that Quirk, and Aizawa might lose any way to find a connection between him and the mysterious Lethal Protector. Even if he found no connection, he could at least keep an eye on him and hopefully put those skills to good use in heroics.

‘He’ll be no All Might, but powers like that will gave other villains a good reason to stay hidden.’ Aizawa thought as he watched the image of Izuku-Venom pulling the machine down two strands of it’s blackened, slimy biomass tendrils.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Izuku sat on his couch, going over his hero notes, as Venom’s serpentine-like head bobbed to his right, then his left, looking things over, before looking to the TV. The Symbiote seemed much more touchy then usual today. He had been acting odd the whole past week, especially after the exams.

“How much longer must we wait?” The Symbiote asked.  
“It takes a while for the heroes to grade the performance and all.” Izuku remarked.

“How could it take so long?” Venom hissed in irritation. “We only had one point.”

“I know Venom.” Izuku said with annoyance.

“I mean, that shouldn’t take long to add up.” Venom continued as though his host hadn’t said a word.

“I get it.” Izuku said in irritation, grinding his teeth in annoyance. “For someone in my head, you really don’t know when to quit.”

“Sorry you’re such a softy.” Venom teased with a chuckle. “We will avoid hurting your delicate feelings from now on.”

“You’re not funny.” Izuku muttered, rolling his eyes, as he gave an agitated huff.

There was a knock on the door, as a package was slipped through the mail slot in the door, as the person walked off. Izuku looked up in surprise, and stood up from the couch, as Venom overtook his arm, and snapped outwards, latching onto the package and slowly drawing it into his host, like a fishermen drawing in a wrangled fish. Finally, Izuku felt it touch his real hand, as a surprising amount of weight fell onto it.

“What is in this thing?” Venom wondered aloud, his head slithering close to it.

“No clue.” Izuku said with a shrug.

“It could be a bomb.” Venom hissed wearily.

“Who would bomb us?” Izuku demanded in irritation.

“Your ‘friend’ Katsuki.” Venom ventured.

Izuku gave him a rueful glare, but simply shook his head and headed to his room. The envelope was from UA itself, the stamp of approval form the highest office and everything. He looked over the envelope for any thing else, like any words or phrases written on it, but only he saw was the seal of UA, and his address written across it. He turned over and over again and again, trying to find anything else, but simply opened the door to his room, and placed it on the desk gently, not wanting to break it or anything.

Izuku held up his hand, as Venom overtook his pointer and middle finger, transforming them into blackened claws, as he hooked them into the envelope, and swipped through it, easiely slicing the paper in two, and letting him reach in and grab the small, semi-circle device from the letter. It was all black, with no writtings or markings on it.

“You think it’s a bomb Venom?” Izuku asked, glancing at the small head of his Symbiote.

“I don’t sense anything.” Venom remarked. “Of course, I can only sense things about 10 seconds in advance, so you might still end up fried and crispy.”

Izuku rolled his eyes, as he tried to tap any part of the machine, shake it a bit, and try and get it to work. No combination of pushing or prodding would get it to activate. Finally frustrated by it, he made a fist, and gently bopped the top of the machine, only for it start rumbling and vibrating, before the top flashed an off-light blue. Venom drew back slightly, eyes widening.

“You’ve doomed us all!” He hissed in a panic, before a hologram appeared, showing the familiar form of All Might.

Izuku gave Venom a tired glance, shaking his head at the Symbiote’s panic attack as the creature bent his head low slightly, a sheepish expression in his white eyes. “Sorry.”

“Hello Young Midoriya, Venom!” All Might greeted with his booming voice, the camera shaking slightly. “Apologizes for how long this took, we heroes are busy with two things; paper work and fighting crime!”

He laughed heartily as Izuku gave a small smile, and he continued. “After all, with great power comes a great amount of pencil pushing!”

A figure beyond the camera whispered something to All Might, before his hand appeared, and motioned for All Might to speed this up. All Might shrugged, his infalliable smile never fadding.

“Sorry, I have more to do.” He stated, his voice softening from a massive typhoon to a small hurricane. “Anyway, you scored near the top on your written exams, but you only got one point on your practical tests. That, unfortunately, would mean you fail.”

Izuku felt his heart drop like a stone, as tears began to well up in his eyes. All Might held up his hands.

“But wait, there’s more Young Man!” He stated, as the screen shifted and changed to that of security footage of the offices the Heroes used while teaching.

There, was Present Mic, Venom hissing slightly at the sight of him, as the girl that had saved Izuku’s face and who, in turn, Izuku had saved from the robot. He watched in shock, trying to dry out his eyes.

“Excuse me, that boy with the plain face, and the scary monster Quirk, I heard he only scored one point.” She said, looking around nervously. “I was just wondering, since he helped save me, that if I could give him half of my points. It’s only fair.”

Present Mic seemed to consider her words for a moment, before slightly shaking his head. “I’m sorry, but that isn’t allowed. I can’t say much, but he’ll be fine.”

He gave Uraraka a pat on the shoulder, nodding slightly, as the screen shifted back to All Might. Izuku was taken a back that someone he had barely talked to would try and help him out.

“You not only risked yourself to help another, but inspired others to move and do good themselves.” All Might said encouragingly. “That’s the essence of what a hero is, and for that, you were awarded 60 Hero Points, putting in the passing grade.”

Izuku’s eyes widened in shock, as a fresh set of tears began to roll down his cheeks. Venom wanted to say something to mock his host for being so soft and emotional, but decided against it. He could make fun of him later, this was too special a moment.

“With that, you’ll be able to study at UA! Welcome to the Hero Course!” All Might stated, giving a quick thumbs up. “Lucky for you, I’ll be teaching this year. I can’t wait to see you there and help get that Quirk to tip-top shape.”

All Might gave him a final salute, before the screen faded, and a broad smile spread across Izuku’s face, as he turned to his Symbiote.

“Thank you Venom.” He managed through his tears.

Venom bobbed his head back abit, before shaking it. “No, I only need you for a ride. The heroics was all you. I only gave you the powers to accomplish it.”

Venom shifted his head around, looking back at the device, before hissing slightly to himself. “You are not as much of a loser as I originally thought.”

“Thanks, you’re too bad yourself.” Said Izuku with a sniffle, as he dried his eyes. “For a parasite.”

“Parasite!?” Venom growled in rage. “Apologize!”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The week after, Izuku was practically on cloud nine. The entire thing had lifted his spirits in a way he didn’t think possible, and nothing was going to get him down, especially when he had Venom with him all the way. When the day finally came for the two to make their way into UA, Izuku could hardly sleep, until Venom began toying with his brain to release some chemicals to finally put him to sleep. When they awoke early, the two were able to prepare a large breakfast for Izuku’s mom, and let her see them off. Venom had still kept himself a secret from her, but was showing some of his powers as he prepared the meal.

As they walked along to the great gates of UA, Izuku took a deep breath as he looked it over again. “Amazing.”

“It’s still the same place.” Venom grumbled in his head. “What’s so amazing about it now?”

“Nothing, let’s get moving.” Izuku replied quickly, running off to the gates, and to get to his class.

It was a big school, and Izuku probably would’ve gotten lost had it not been for Venom’s senses. He merely directed Izuku towards the highest concentration of bodies, on the floor and hall where Izuku knew the class was at, and let the rest work itself out. Izuku came to a stop at the giant door marked 1-A, and turned to Venom’s small head projected from his shoulder.

“You think this is it.”

“Most likely.”

“Alright, let’s make our first steps,” He said with a smile, opening the door. “Hopefully Kacchan isn’t in our Class.”  
He opened the door, only for his smile to falter immediately, as he saw Bakugou himself seated in the back, leaning back in a chair, with his feet on the desk. The Glasses Guy, Tenya, who had helped Izuku earlier was there, standing over, yelling at Bakugou. Izuku cringed slightly. Either this guy was very brave, or very stupid, or didn’t know Bakugou and what he would do quite yet.

“You must remove your feet from the desk!” He insisted, gesturing sharply to Bakugou’s shoes. “This is simply improper!”

“What a stiff!” Bakugou taunted with a harsh laugh. “Where you born with that stick in your ass, or have it surgically implanted?”

“How dare you, I...” He began, before glancing over to see Izuku standing in the doorway looking at them shocked.

He darted over immediately, and before Izuku could even blink, he was standing in front of him, readjusting his glasses. “Hello! I believe we already meet Izuku. Good to see you made it in.”

“Yeah. You too.” Izuku said nervously, looking around the class.

“I was worried you know, you were acting most strangely.” Tenya said, making a slight chopping motion with his right hand. “I was worried you wouldn’t be performing at 100%.”

“Nothing can keep us down!” Venom bragged, his twisted grin widening. “Not even that horrific sonic attack.”

Tenya merely shrugged. “Well, I am impressed with your abilities. You obviously knew something else about the test I didn’t.”

Izuku was about to say no, and say he knew just about as much as Tenya, if not less, before someone ran up behind him.

“Wow, you made it in too?” A familiar voice said behind him, excited as ever.

He turned to see the same girl who had done so much for him, standing there smiling. ‘It’s the girl from earlier! She looks nice in a school uniform...’

Venom sighed, narrowing his eyes in agitation, before he grumbled into his host’s ear. “We need to get you laid.”

Izuku blushed brightly, as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “Ugh, I don’t think we formally introduced ourselves.”

“I’m Ochako Uraraka!” She greeted with a wide smile. “It was amazing watching you at work, all those ropes or whatever you shot out, webbing I think it was.”

“Not webs.” Venom corrected defensively. “Not a fan of spiders...”

“I’m Izuku Midoriya.” He said quickly, barely able to catch his breath from excitement. “And it was nothing, I just reacted and went from there and...”  
“I thought it was cool, even if your Quirk is a little scary.” She gushed. “I wonder who our teacher is, if it’s a hero or...”

“He’s behind you.” Venom said. 

Ochako raised an eyebrow in confusion, turning in time to see a… Human? Dragging himself across the ground in an over-sized sleeping bag, his tired face poking out, as he looked up at them, his face cold and tired.

“Well, well, if we’re here to make friends, you better find somewhere else to do it.” He muttered in agitation, as he shifted slightly to bring a juice box up to his mouth, and sucked in hard, sipping up whatever was left as it crumbled. “Let’s get class started.”

The three went as fast as they could to their seats, as the man, dressed in beat, ratty black cloths, with an unshaven face and greasy black hair down to his shoulders, stood up from his sleeping bag, shoulders sagging.

“So, it took you three minutes to get to your seats.” He said, shaking his head. “Not good. You kids gotta sharpen up if you’re gonna do well.”

He dragged his bag behind him, as he walked to the front of the class. “We’ll be skipping the Entrance Ceremony and heading over the to the gym. Get changed and get ready.”

“But I thought...” Uraraka began.

“We teachers are free to do as we want with our glasses.” He interrupted tiredly. “We don’t need an entrance ceremony anyway for what we’re doing. None of you are in high school anymore.”

She fell silent, looking down at her desk, as Izuku looked up at him. Was he a hero of some sort? He didn’t look like any that Izuku had seen, or looked like he would fit in with any for that matter. He could defiantly recognize him, but it was the name that was escaping him, and the Quirk with it. Venom, however, seemed unusually bothered by the man’s presence, slipping back into Izuku’s body, and speaking into his mind.

“That is Eraserhead.” Venom hissed from within Izuku’s ears. “We must be careful.”

‘I always wanted to meet him, he has such an interesting Quirk and style of combat and...’ He thought excitedly, before lowering his eyebrows. ‘Wait...what do you mean by careful.’

“He was one of the heroes pursuing me when I went on my little buffet experience.” Venom stated nervously. “We never meet, but we did catch sight of each other, and he was talking about bringing me in or something.”

‘You said no heroes were trying to find you!’ Izuku thought in a panic, sweat beginning to drip from his forehead.

“I thought I could slip by with that little lie.” Venom said, before making a sound as though he had clicked his teeth. “We should be very careful, he could already be...”

“Izuku, is something wrong?” Aizawa asked, as the rest of the class began to get up and file towards the locker rooms.

“No sir!” Izuku said nervously, bolting up. “Sorry, I was just thinking about something.”

“Well, get a move on, and don’t let your mind wonder. You’re in the big leagues now.” Aizawa said, his cold expression softening only slightly, as he gestured with his head to the exit. “Come on.”

Izuku bolted from his seat, and made his way to the door as fast as he could, Aizawa raising an eyebrow at his strange behavior, but merely sighing and waiting for him to leave before he closed the door behind him. It was a school of heroics. He doubted any would be normal by any sense of the word.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The area outside that the class ended up walking to was a wide open field, almost like a track and field practice area, With all sorts of fields and areas for testing different Quirks, abilities and powers. Venom pensively popped his head out of Izuku’s shoulder, looking the place over, before he turned to his host.

“What are we doing here?” He hissed. “I’d rather smash robots, not join a track or baseball team.”

“You always struck me as the cheerleader type Venom.” Izuku muttered with a small grin.

Venom’s eyes narrowed in annoyance, as he shook his head, before turning it to Aizawa, hands still in his pockets, back still slouched, as he looked over the group, obviously sizing them up. After a moment, he stopped, and produced what appeared to be a baseball, but with a black band in the middle, and held it up for the class to see.

“Here at UA, they pride themselves on being more free then other schools with how they run things,” Aizawa explained. “And this applies to us teachers. We’ll be running a Quirk Apprehension Test.”

‘A test, so soon into class?’ Izuku thought with worry.

“Relax, Deku.” Venom said, rumbling beneath his skin. “We’ll crush anything Eraser puts in our way.”

‘I don’t know about this...’ Izuku mentally stated, shaking his head slightly.

“Softball throws, Seated Toe-touch, stuff like that. The schools tested you with non-Quirk related physical exercises.” Aizawa explained. “The country still wants to treat us all like we’re born equal. It’s illogical. The Education group is just dancing around the issue. Procrastinating.”

He looked around the students, many of them shocked, msot of them uncertain, as he held up the ball for them all to see, before looking to Bakugou.

“Bakugou, you scored highest in the practical exam.” Aizawa stated, tossing him the ball. “How far could you throw in school?”

“About 67 meters.” Bakugou said, tossing the ball into the air, and catching it a couple of times.

“Alright, now try it with your Quirk.” Aizawa suggested. “I don’t care what you do, just don’t leave the circle ok?”  
Bakugou nodded, stretching his limbs slightly, as he winded up his throwing arm.

‘Alright, I’ll throw it like I always do.’ He thought, as his grip tightened on the ball. ‘I’ll just add a little boom to it.’

He pulled back, and threw it hard, yelling to the skies. “DIE!”

Aizawa remained impassive, as Izuku raised an eyebrow. ‘Die?’

The explosion consumed most of the air and area in front of Bakugou, as the flaming ball tore into the atmosphere, shattering the sound barrier, before falling to the ground several meters ahead, smacking into the ground, and burning the grass slightly as it landed.

Aizawa held up the recording device from his hand for them all to see. 705.2 meters outward. The rest of the class was instantly amazed. Many of them began to mutter amongst themselves and talk with excitement about the prospects of being able to use their Quirks without having to hold back.

“This is awesome!”

“We’ll finally be able to use our Quirks, this will be fun!”

“Fun?” Aizawa asked, glaring at them through his greasy hair. “So you plan on going to the greatest school for heroics, and just having a fun, dumb old time?”

He shook his head slightly, his icy glare freezing all of them in place. “Fine then. In this test, the person to score last will be expelled immediately, no questions asked.”

“That’s not fair!” Uraraka pipped up from the group, as they all fell silent in shock from the statement, many still trying to process it fully.

“Oh? And natural disasters that destroy whole cities are? Monstrous villains, madmen and power-hungry crime lords?” Aizawa remarked. “You came here to be heroes, so it’s time to live up to that standard. Plus Ultra, right?”

He turned away, moving to pick up the ball, as he continued on. “I’m sorry to say, but UA will be running you all through the gutter for the next three years, so get used to this.”

Venom seemed to sense Izuku’s tenseness, squirming beneath him slightly, as he spoke. “Relax Izuku, we have much more power then most of these kids. Don’t be so jumpy.”

‘We still have to be careful.’ Izuku thought, looking around nervously. ‘If he was stalking you and we show too much...’

“Relax.” Venom repeated. “If you act like a spastic idiot, we’ll certainly get caught. Be exceptionally normal and physically fit, got it?”

Izuku wasn’t certain, but tried not to let his worry show on his face. Aizawa was studying them all, but seemed to focus his cold glare upon Izuku. Perhaps it was his worry playing tricks on him, perhaps it really was Aizawa looking him over, trying to figure out or piece it together yet if indeed Izuku and Venom were the same as the Lethal Protector he was trying to track down. He bite his lip slightly, focusing on the trials ahead, rather then letting his fears hold him back. If he started freezing up, Aizawa would notice something and start asking questions. Like it or not, he had to follow Venom’s advise.

‘I’m definitely cutting you off on tator tots after this.’ Izuku thought as Venom merely chuckled.

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The coming tests proved easier then expected for Izuku. While he couldn’t bring Venom out in full, both due to Aizawa’s careful attention to detail and all, and so he wouldn’t give any of the other students something to haunt their nightmares, Venom proved useful in every regard, enhancing his hands and arms with his mass to improve their grip strength, enhancing his legs to improve running speed, and a variety of other methods to improve their score. He quickly noticed that he wasn’t really measuring up to many of them. Iida was faster, Shoji edged out in the strength department by a thin margin, and the list went on.

“Don’t focus on them. As long as we stay away from the bottom, we can improve our abilities going forward.” Venom advised, as they prepared for the next test.

“When did you become an encouraging mentor?” Izuku muttered to him, as they made their way to the baseball diamond.

“I just want you focused, so we can stay here.” Venom said. “We don’t have the Vigilante option anymore. If we do, Aizawa will piece together you dropping out, and the return of the “lethal protector”, he'll put two and two together.”

‘Maybe you could avoid eating heads for once?’ Izuku thought bitterly, shuttering at the thought.

“Why would I do that? They taste too good to waste.” Venom replied in confusion.

“Alright, you know the drill.” Aizawa said, tossing the ball repeatedly into his palm. “Use your Quirk, throw it, don’t step outta the circle, got it?”

They went down the order, students called up, using their techniques, and sending the ball flying away. The highest of course, was Uraraka, who managed to send the ball flying off into the skies with her gravity power. Aizawa showed no signs of any pride or encouragement, merely recording their throw distances, and nodding for them to get back with the group. After half of the class finished, Aizawa gestured for Izuku.

“Midoriya, you’re next.” He stated, as he came forward, catching the ball from Aizawa, as the shimmering, slimy coating of Venom’s mass overtook his right arm. His blackened claws tapped against the surface of the ball, as he walked up to the circle.

Izuku brought his arm back, and swung it forward, the ball flying into the clouds from the force of Venom’s enhanced throw.

“Fantastic! In everything, we are beyond most others! Even in baseball!” Venom boasted within his head.

‘Calm down Venom.’ Izuku thought, carefully watching Aizawa.

Izuku headed back to the rest of the group, as several of the students congratulated him on his amazing throw, except of course Bakugou, who was merely glaring at him out of the corner of his eye. Aizawa went through the scores, looking out at the students, before displaying the scores for all to see. At the bottom, lowest of all, was Mineta. The purple, ball-haired dwarf looked ready to break down there, before Aizawa spoke.

“I won’t bother talking to you about your Quirks. We’ll work on what we need to throughout the year.” Aizawa said, even as Mineta looked ready to drop. “Anything else?”

No one said anything, only a few giving Mineta some pitiful glances and apologetic looks. Aizawa began to walk away, before turning back around.

“Oh, and no one’s getting expelled.” He said, a cesshire cat grin on his usual dour face. “That was just a rouse to make sure you did you’re best. You all get to stay.”

He walked away, taking a small vial and dropping some sort of liquid into his eyes. Izuku watched him in confusion for a moment. When had he used his Quirk?

“Class is dismissed for today, you can all get ready for home.” He said, walking away, as they all began to talk and chatter among themselves as they headed back to the gym lockers.

Aizawa rounded a corner, surprised to see the mountain-like frame of All Might waiting around the corner for him.

“What are you doing here?” He asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

“I just wanted to check in on Midoriya.” All Might stated, looking out at the young student, as his Quirk’s blackened mass appeared from his back, forming a serpentine head. “Did you find any connection to Jet?”

“No, but the strangest thing happened.” Aizawa said, pointing to his eyes. “I’m not sure what happened, but I used my Quirk on him, and nothing happened. I’ll have to try it again, but I’m not sure what’s going on with him.”

“Hmm.” All Might said thoughtfully. “What’s the plan.”

“I have no clue, but I’ll keep him around to see what he does.” Aizawa remarked, before raising an eyebrow at him. “Why are you so interested in him? Little early to be playing favorites, right?”

“Something about him caught my eye.” All Might replied with a shrug.

“Other then becoming a seven foot tall, slime-covered reptile?” Aizawa asked.

“Other then that.” All Might said with a nod. 

Aizawa considered his words for a moment. “I think he could be a good hero, like the others, if given time.”

The two stood for a moment, an awkward silence hanging above them, All Might almost wanting to gently mocking him for going soft on a student, before Aizawa spoke.

“See you around All Might.” Aizawa muttered, walking off towards the building.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Izuku, after getting changed, made his way to the frontgates to head home, before he was stopped by Tokayami, the Raven-headed student, who stepped beside him. He stood there awkwardly for a moment, as though not sure what to say.

“Uh, hey, you okay Tokoyami?” Izuku asked, looking around in confusion for a moment. Tokayami was not the most outgoing type to talk with.

“Yes, Midoriya, I was just wondering about your Quirk.” He said, as Venom morphed and shifted out of Izuku’s back, looking him over, falling silent as the Symbiote watched him.

“If you want to speak, then speak.” Venom growled in irritation.

Tokoyami narrowed his eyes in annoyance, but merely shrugged. “I was about to ask how you keep your Quirk under control so well, but I see he can be just as rambunctious as my Dark Shadow.”

A large twirling mass appeared from his chest, forming into a large, clawed hand, and giving them the thumbs up.

“Well, Venom’s just a dumb parasite sometimes.” Izuku said a shrug. “I keep him under control with promises of chocolate.”

“Parasi…?!” Venom began, before Izuku shoved his hand into his toothy maw, stopping him. Venom shook slightly with rage, but said nothing.

“Interesting.” Tokoyami stated deadpan, before turning to walk away. “I was just curious about the similarities between our abilities. Apologies, but I have to head home soon.”

Tokoyami began to walk towards the exits, as Izuku began to call out for him, before stopping himself. He wasn’t sure what else they could talk about. Tokoyami didn’t seem to be the most outgoing sort, and Izuku wasn’t sure even where to begin with their powers.

“Ah, Izuku, you’re still here!” Iida’s voice called out from behind him, as he turned to see Uraraka and Iida approaching, backpacks slug over their shoulders. “We were hoping to catch you before you left.”

“Oh, hey Iida, Uraraka.” He said, slightly surprised. 

Venom turned his head slightly towards Izuku. “Can’t we leave now, I’m getting hungry. You won’t need that spleen anyway.”

“Stop.” Izuku commanded quietly, before turning to the others as all three began to walk out. “So, that exam was pretty scary huh?”

“Oh yeah, that guy’s a total nightmare.” Uraraka said. “I’m surprised he didn’t follow through on his promise. I heard form someone he once expelled an entire class.”

“Then he has high standards, that I’m sure our class will meet!” Iida said defiantly. “I doubt any of us will fall short.”

“Except for Mineta.” Hissed Venom. “Given his...below average height.”  
“Venom, no short jokes.” Izuku warned. “I’ll cut you off on tator tots tonight if you don’t watch it.”

“Calm it down Deku, just poking some fun at him.” Venom said, his smile broadening a bit.

“Deku? I’ve heard Bakugou call you that too. Why?” Uraraka asked.

“Oh, it’s a nick-name. It’s supposed to make fun of me.” Izuku said with a shrug, looking down slightly. “He’s called me that for years, and Venom kinda picked it up.”

“Well, I think it’s kinda cute.” Ochako said with a smile. “Has a really determined vibe to it.”

“Really?” Izuku asked, taken aback.

“Yeah, I do like it.” She said with a happy nod.

“Then I guess there’s nothing wrong with it!” He said quickly, hiding his face in his palms. “DEKUITIS.”

“Really, it was supposed to be a hurtful nickname, I thought?” Iida said in surprise. “What’s gotten into you?”

“I...I can’t explain it.” Izuku said sheepishly, shaking his head.

Venom growled to himself, shaking his own minaturized head. “You are shameless Deku.”


	4. The Fated First Clash

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku and Venom quickly learn how to handle unhealthy relationships in an equally unhealthy way.

Izuku was again up early the next morning, preparing himself for the day to come, not what to expect from any of his teachers. While he had settled into a comfortable schedule, English with Present Mic (Even though Venom loathed being in the same room), Lunch (which Venom was always eager to get to, several times taking control of his legs to force him along) and everything else, including art, history and normal school stuff. A lot of it was surprisingly easy, even if Venom grew restless at many times, and demanded they go off to fight something to relieve the stress.

So there was Izuku, preparing his notes for the coming day, as Venom, hung out beside him, his tiny head sprouting from Izuku’s left shoulder, as he watched his notes. 

“Do not forget the detail on English Imperialism in Ireland.” Venom suggested. “Though it wasn’t covered, it will impress your teacher if you know more then what was taught.”

Izuku raised a wry eyebrow in surprise, as he gave a small grin. “Where did you learn about Irish history and all that Venom? Did you eat a historian’s brain while I was asleep.”

“No, I just use your phone and fingers to look things up while you sleep.” Venom stated, bobbing his head slightly in his form of a shrug. “I don’t need to sleep, so I need something to pass the time.”

“Better then you eating people I guess.” Izuku muttered, as he jotted down some of Venom’s suggestions. “Is that why I’m finding Godzillo’s hero records and movies on my phone too?”

Venom bobbed his head again, which Izuku had come to recognize as his way of shrug. “He’s similar to us. Big, night black, fangs throughout his maw, and savage in a fight. We would do well to replicate him.”

Izuku scratched his chin for a moment, considering it. “I mean, I always wanted to be like All Might, but our style is really different from him.”

Izuku was silent for a moment, contemplating what Venom had said, as he considered everything. As always, he was reminded that, even if he graduated and became a hero, there was no way he was going to inspire people with his smile and positivity, not with Venom as his look anyway. He’d quickly climb to the top of the list of heroes that look like villains. He didn’t mind Gang Orca, Godzillo and the like either, but scaring people didn’t suit him.

“Your plans may have to change.” Venom suggested, obviously reading his mind. “I know we are not exactly a welcome sight to any in need, but look at Godzillo. A vibrant movie career and life in the spot light with millions of fans even all these years later. There is something to learn there.”

“Maybe...” Izuku muttered, still uncertain. He took a deep breath in, and shook his head.

He would have to pass all his classes and tests before he could try and figure out where his hero work would take him. And something big was coming up. He needed to have a hero costume. At first, he wasn’t sure about it. Venom was always with him, always covering him and protecting him, while working the same look as a costume. But he also didn’t want to be left out.

“Izuku, before you go to school, I have something for you.” His mother called from near the front door.

Venom retreated back into his body, bubbling and moving just beneath his skin, as Izuku sat down his notepad and walked to the kitchen. He saw his mother waiting there, holding a green jumpsuit of some sort in a dry cleaners’ bag, 

“I saw this in your notepad, when you feel asleep studying one night.” She explained, holding it out for him. “I felt bad, pitying you and all, when you did nothing but push yourself to be a hero. So I made this for you. To apologize for not believing in you.”

Izuku was speechless for a moment, as he stepped forward, and took it from his mother. He blinked several times, before smiling to her.

“Thanks mom.” Izuku managed, fighting back tears, as he motioned towards the living room. “I gotta get ready.”

“Alright Izuku, good luck out there.” His mother said with a warm smile.

Izuku went into the living, carrying his new hero costume with him, as he loaded up his bookbag. Venom snacked around, under the skin around his back, before speaking again.

“I like your mother.” He remarked. “She’s not quite the loser you are.”

“Thanks Venom. Despite you being you, I wouldn’t be here without you.” Izuku muttered with a small smile.

Venom seemed satisfied with his answer, not giving another snarky remark again, as the headed to the door.  
//////////////////  
Izuku sat at his desk, as Venom for once remained hidden within his body, as they waited for Aizawa to arrive. The class strangely silent, as they waited, until Venom stiffened with his body, his head popping out again. Denki shuddered slightly as he watched.

“Dude, I don’t want to say anything...” He began.

“It’s alright, I know Venom’s disgusting.” Izuku said with a nod. The head came out, as Venom pulled back in shock. “How dare you!”

“What do you want Venom?” Izuku asked.

“Someone’s coming. Someone different then Aizawa.” Venom reported, as the other students looked at him in surprise. 

Before anyone could ask, the door swung up, and the bright red, blue and white frame of All Might was already through the doorway.

“I AM HERE, COMING THROUGH THE DOOR LIKE A NORMAL PERSON!” He shouted with the force to knock those closest to him out their seats, cap billowing behind him.

Everyone whispered excitedly among themselves at the sight of the World’s greatest hero, as Venom retreated back into Izuku’s body. All Might went to the front of the class, bounding with every step like he had more energy then most people did in their entire life time.

“Today class, we’ll be doing Hero basic Training!” He announced. “The sort of thing that puts your right through the wringer, but will lay the foundation for a great hero!”

He pulled out a card from his costume, holding it out for all to see. “And today, we’ll be going through Battle Training!”

‘Battle?’ Izuku thought with worry, as Venom bubbled beneath the skin in excitement, Bakugou ahead of him was grinning from ear to ear with way too much excitement.

He hit a button on the desk, as case upon case was unfolded from the walls, each marked with a student’s number across it.

“First you’re going to need the look to go with it friends!” All Might declared, gesturing for them. “Costumes are the basis to all great heroes!”

The students began to file in to grab their costumes, as Izuku took out his perfect folded and prepared costume from his mother, looking at if for a moment, before nodding.

“I’ll make sure to take the brunt of the injuries.” Venom said within his head. “Your mother put a lot of hard work in, after all.”

‘Don’t get soft big guy.’ Izuku thought, as the class headed out to the lockers to change.

“Remember, with these, you truly have begun your path as heroes.” All Might stated. “After you’re done, head to the practice zones.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Izuku was the last to finish getting dressed, running to the practice city zones, as Venom melted through his body and overlapped, his body stretching and growing in height and power once again, as Venom’s fang-filled maw twisted and snapped into shape around him. His powerful strides brought him out into the open, his back hunched slightly, as Venom took his position behind the rest of the young heroes, careful not to surprise them with his appearance.

“Alright, time to begin with today’s simulation!” All Might announced with his usual wide grin.

He went into detail over what was expected of them. Divided into teams of two, each would either be assigned hero or villain detail, and work to either protect or capture a ‘nuclear’ weapon hidden within a building. The heroes would have to disable or hinder the villain team, and capture the weapon, or out-maneuver them and get to the weapon. All the Villains had to do was either wait them out, or knock them out. It sounded simple enough.

The students were divided up, Tenya and Bakugou ending up together, which would’ve made Izuku laugh had he not been so nervous about the coming test. Could he do what he needed? What if Venom went out of control?

“Deku, we’re partnered up!” Uraraka said excitedly, smiling despite Venom’s ferocious looks.  
“I..I know..” He managed, nervously, as Venom’s face split open and pulled back. “You’ve...you’ve got a nice costume.”

“I know.” She said. The black and white jumpsuit was adorned with pink-light purple highlights, as a visor helmet was placed over her face. “It’s just a little tight. I should’ve been more specific.”

Mineta stepped beside him, giving him the thumbs up, eyeing Uraraka. “This hero course is the best.”

Venom made a grumbling noise deep in Izuku’s ears. “This dwarf irritates me.”

“Watch it Venom.” Izuku whispered, as Venom’s face twisted and snapped back over Izuku’s own. Venom’s deep baritone overtook Izuku’s as he spoke again. “So you don’t find this scary to look at?”

“A little bit, but Venom did save me right?” She said with a sweet smile. “Hard to be terrified of a Quirk like that.”

“We appreciate your words.” Venom stated, his Glasgow grin broadening. “We told Izuku to keep an eye on you.”

“Alright, the first two teams up to bat will be...” All Might declared, interrupting their talks, reaching into the two boxes with him, before yanking out a large white and red ball, each with a letter on them. “Teams A and D! D will be villains, A as the heroes!”

Izuku froze up, as Venom’s sliver-like eyes narrowed and glanced over at Bakugou, who had a murderous grin on his face, as he slammed his fist into his palm, smoke rising from both hands as a vein throbbed in his forehead. Iida looked at him with slight disdain, still not liking the idea of working with someone who went against what he considered heroic, but decided against saying anything.

‘Best to see how he acts. Midoriya described him as a bully, but perhaps being in the hero course will help him work some of his issues out.’ Iida thought, as the two went off towards the building with the bomb. ‘Perhaps we got off to a bad start. Maybe he was just trying to impress people with his rebellious attitude.’

Venom glared at Bakugou through narrowed eyes, even as he passed, clicking his fangs together slightly in anticipation for battle. Izuku was still nervously, his body shaking within Venom’s glistening form, as the Symbiote snarled with annoyance slightly, trying not to get Uraraka’s attention.

‘Izuku, quit that.’ Venom mentally ordered in agitation. ‘We have nothing to worry about.’

“But He’s looking for a fight. He’ll come after us.” Izuku said nervously. “And with fire being your weakness...”

‘We will be fine. We’re far too good of a match for him to defeat.’ Venom replied as they followed the other two towards the building. ‘Just relax and focus, we both need each other at our A-game to win.’

“Just...don’t eat any heads.” Izuku said, sounding like he was about to get sick.

‘I make no promises.’ Venom hissed.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Uraraka was the first to climb up and onto the first story window, and get inside, as Venom scambered upwards after her, pulverizing and smashing the bricks leading up to it, before forcing himself through the window, rolling over his shoulder, and coming to his feet. Uraraka raised an eyebrow at his loud entrance, but said nothing, figuring Izuku would have trouble switching between a normal body and the massive alien form he had now. Venom turned to her, his muscled frame bent low to look her in the eye, as his lips pulled in to cover his fangs.

“Do you have a plan?” He asked, his deep voice sounding like a serpent’s warning hiss.

“No, I thought you would.” She admitted.

Venom stood up slightly, looking around the dirty, dusty halls for a moment, before gesturing for her to follow. 

“We know the bomb is at the top.” Venom remarked, still keeping his voice low, as they made their way towards one of the corners. “Now we just have to make our way up there.”

They were about to round the corner, when Venom came to a sudden stop, freezing in his tracks, as Uraraka looked up at him in confusion. The alien held up a finger to quiet her, as he carefully stepped towards the corner. He peeled the black flesh of his lips back, his dagger-like fangs exposed to the air, as he began to move around the corner to get a good look. Right as he did, an explosion tore through the area, knocking Venom back with a surprised roar, as he hit the opposite wall, before a second explosion roared to life towards him.

Uraraka yelled in surprise, as Venom rose to his feet slowly, half it’s face burned off to reveal Izuku’s own, now scorched and scared. Venom snarled in rage, Izuku’s eye briefly turning black as it narrowed and focused ahead.

“Deku, are you alright?” She asked in terror. 

His eye returned to it’s green appearance, as he looked at her, nodding slightly.

“Yeah, it’s just a scratch.” He said quickly, as Katsuki rose from the rubble, smoke still smoldering from his finger tips.

Venom enclosed Izuku’s face again, as he glared at Bakugou, the Explosion-using Quirk user slowly approaching.

“Come on Deku, let’s not waste time!” Bakugou yelled in rage. “Let’s see what your over-glorified gimp suit can do!”

Venom snapped his jaws threateningly, flexing his clawed hands in preparation as Bakugou approached, seemingly undeterred by the appearance of Venom at all. To him, this would always be Deku. Weak, pathetic, easily crushable Deku.

‘He’s just a pebble. Just a pebble.’ Bakugou thought to himself, as he lifted his right hand, small explosions sparking off his palm and fingertips. “You hide that damn Quirk from me! Don’t lie, I know you lied about being a late bloomer! That’s bullshit!”

“Uraraka, stay back.” Venom warned.

“Remember what I told you when we were kids?” Bakugou demanded, pupils shrinking into two rage-filled pinpoints within his eyes. “No matter what Quirk you have, I’ll always be better then you! You’re about to learn that the hard way!”

He rushed forward, swinging his right palm at Venom’s head again, as the Symbiote lashed out with his left, grabbing above the grenadier gauntlet, before locking down on his opposite shoulder. Bakugou yelled in protest and surprise, before Venom turned on his heel, and tossed the smaller teen over his shoulder, and onto the ground, with a crash. Bakugou groaned in agony as he bounced off the ground, Venom standing his ground as he bared his fangs at him.

“For years, you’ve been so cruel, Kacchan, but through it all, I watched you. I learned what hand you like to lead with.” Izuku said, as Venom’s face peeled back like a fruit. “When all I’ve done is tried to be more like you. I’m not gonna be your worthless punching bag Deku forever! Kacchan...I’m...I’m gonna be the Deku who wins no matter what!”

Venom’s face peeled back over his Host, his fang-filled grin taking over, as Uraraka watched with a pride-filled smile. “Today, you will learn, Bakugou...We….Are Venom.”

Bakugou slowly got to his feet, eyes burning pure red with rage, as smoke rose from his entire body. Venom was almost impressed. Perhaps his pride and rage was so great, even Venom couldn’t intimidate such a mad beast of a child.

“Then show me what you got!” He yelled. “I want to see what that useless quirk of yours can do!”

Venom shot Uraraka a glance. “Get to the bomb, and neutralize it.”

He focused back on Bakugou, Venom’s eyes narrowed as he studied his foe. Bakugou would be focused on him, and would probably hurt Uraraka is she got in the way. Further, trying to get to the bomb would lead to them having to fight both power Quirk users at once. Both trying to take out Bakugou might take too long.

‘This is the only option.’ Izuku thought.

“I would want to fight both usually, but Bakugou has a beating coming.” Venom whispered, as the Explosion-user held his back behind him, and exploded towards him. “A personal beating from us truly.”

Bakugou rushed at him, explosions propelling him along, as he stopped in front of Venom, and swung a kick aimed at the side of his head. Venom’s left arm shot up, blocking the striking, as he reached over with the other limb, black strands of goo and biomass shooting out and beginning to wrap around his ankle. Bakugou almost pulled back in surprise, before swinging his other arm forward and trying to blast out Venom’s face. The Symbiote merely dropped him, and ran off around the corner.

In the control room far from the battle, All Might and the other students stood watching the battle, surprised at the twists and turning events, many taken aback by the appearance of Venom himself. All Might knew all about the Quirk, yet it continued to surprise him with how useful it was in a pinch.

‘Usually Quirks are very situational, forcing a hero to rely on teamwork.’ He thought, watching with interest. ‘Yet Young Midoriya is given a Quirk that lets him have both strength and utility in many situations.’

“Why is he running away?” Kirishima asked, crossing his arms in front of his bare chest. “He could probably overpower him.”

“I think he said something about being weak to fire.” Momo replied, watching with interest. “He’ll probably put together an ambush to gain the advantage.”

Bakugou looked around, fuming with rage. First the nerd had managed to hide a powerful Quirk like that from him, then had out-mauevered him in a fight, and was now running off and hiding while he was left on the back step. He snarled to himself, before his communicator buzzed to life inside his ear.

He pressed it with a growl. “What is it?!”

“Where are you?” Iida demanded. “I can’t guard the bomb alone. Did you at least neutralize of the team members?”

“No, just stay put, I got bigger fish to fry!” Bakugou barked, as he closed off communications.

He looked around, eyes focused in rage. One of his gauntlets flashed red with a loud click. He grinned in excitement. Deku was in for quite the surprise when he finally caught the little twerp. Even with that weird Quirk of his, he hadn’t changed a bit. He could’ve easily tried to out muscle, but he went with what he always did, acting the coward. Bakugou almost felt like he didn’t need to put him in his place, but didn’t want him thinking he would let off easy.

‘No matter what powers you pull out Deku, you’ll always be a pebble in my way.’ He thought, narrowing his eyes with rage.

As he stalked through the building, silently fuming with rage, Izuku and Venom were planning their next move, Venom gripping the corner of a ceiling, just out of sight, though a little difficult to completely blend in, given his incredible size.

“What’s the plan, Deku?” Venom asked, looking around and alert for any approach from Bakugou.

“We need to keep him busy so Uraraka can get to the bomb.” Izuku replied, as he started to mutter slightly, before Venom hissed to silence him.

“We should make for the outside, you and I both know Uraraka isn’t quite up to stuff in personal combat.” Venom replied. “Especially with one such as Iida.”

Venom began to scale across the ceiling, heading towards one of the outer windows. If they could scale up the side of the building, they could avoid the whole trouble of Bakugou, and team up against Iida without Katsuki able to catch up with them. He climbed towards it, before something barreled towards him from the corner of his eye. Venom reflexively jumped away from the ceiling, as something blurred to where he had been climbing, and an explosion of fire and noise, as Venom hit the floor, rolled across the ground, and came to his feet, fangs barred.

“Come on Deku! No holding back you little shit!” Bakugou yelled, sparks flying off off his fingertips, as the grenade-shaped gauntlets on his arms flashed red again. “Show me what your Quirk can do! No running this time!”

“I think our plan has hit a snag.” Venom muttered, as he watched Bakugou carefully. “We’ll have to develop another approach.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Iida stood in front of the dud bomb, trying to contact Bakugou again with his ear piece. He had no clue where Bakugou had run off, and he was refusing to answer any further communications. He grunted in annoyance, shaking his head slightly, as he readjusted his glasses.

“This has been a disgraceful experience.” He muttered, putting his helmet back on. “First being a worthless villain, then being stuck with such a teammate. Troublemaking may come naturally to him, but to me...it is a disgrace to the family name!”

He took a deep breath, as he focused ahead. He needed to pass this course, and give it his all, even if it meant disgracing the family name for a moment here. He took a deep breath, and threw out a deep, booming villainous laugh.

“I will be the greatest villain this course has ever seen!” He declared with a wide, devious grin behind his helmet.

He snapped out of it when he heard stifled laughter from one of the corners of the room. He narrowed his eyes, looking towards there, as he titled his head slightly.

“Uraraka? How did you sneak in here, hero?” He asked, surprised. Bakugou had been so eager to try and go ahead and capture them, and he had let one slip by? ‘He did seem focused on Izuku. I hope his rivalry isn’t blinding his strategic abilities.’

Uraraka meanwhile, covered her mouth and hid behind one of the pillars, absolutely surprised and terrified Iida had managed to hear her over his...acting. If Iida knew she was there, there was no way she could take him alone, given his strength and skill in battle.

“Uraraka, if you are there, you had better surrender, I will show now mercy, hero!” Iida shouted, beginning to step towards her hiding spot. “I know your power! There are no objects in here for you to use!”

She stiffened, trying to think something out, as she heard the distant sound of explosions and roars down below, a great many things, obviously, getting smashed and destroyed in their battle. She was almost thankful Deku/Venom had told her to run to the bomb instead of staying to fight. Iida stopped, clicking his ear piece again.

“What is going on down there?” He demanded.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Venom jumped away from another explosion from Bakugou’s palm, as he watched the gaunlets around his wrists carefully. Something was going with them. He had a bad feeling about those. He growled slightly, as Bakugou pointed his right hand at them.

“Young Bakugou, this is getting out of hand, hold back!” All Might called within his ear.  
“He’ll be fine as long as he dodges!” Bakugou yelled as he released the pin from his wrist gauntlet.

“This isn’t good...” He muttered, before a massive explosion tore free from Bakugou’s palm, and blazed towards the two.

Venom roared in agony, as he barely got out of the way, the left side of his face and part of his arm instantly burned off, as he fell to the ground, smoke rising from the two. Izuku got shakingly to his feet, groaning slightly, as his eye focused on the burnt parts of Venom’s form. It was gray and flaky, like ash, as it feel away from his body and crumbled away out of sight.

“You alright Venom?” He asked, terrified.

“This is very painful.” The symbiote reported, sounding like it was struggling to focus through the pain. “I told you, fire...”

“I know, fire hurts you badly.” Izuku replied, still uneasy. “We have to finish this now.”

“Were it so easy...” Venom grumbled, as Izuku’s visible eye turned black, and the two focused ahead on Bakugou.

“Young Bakugou, do that again, and you’ll be disqualified.” All Might yelled within his ear. “Such a move is not only unbecoming of a hero, but dangerous to your allies, hero or villain.”

“Damn it.” Bakugou growled to himself, left eye twitching in rage, as he turned to Izuku. “Come on Deku! Your quirk talks a lot about eating organs, but you’re acting like the same nerd you’ve always been!”

Venom stood up, Izuku and he looking down at Izuku’s exposed arm. Bakugou ran at him, and jumped towards him, as Izuku reached out his exposed arm at him, as he pulled back his Venom-covered arm, the mass shifting and increasing the size of his fist, before Bakugou blasted an explosive blast at his arm, before flying over Venom’s head, and fired a second blast behind his back, Venom’s mass flaking off and crumbling off some of Izuku’s back, as Venom struggled to stay on his feet.

“Here it comes, your favorite right hook!” Bakugou shouted in mocking praise, swinging his right forearm, and slamming the gauntlet into Izuku’s left, a loud crunching sounding.

Izuku stumbled, Venom roaring in pain, as Bakugou grabbed the slick, blackened mass of Venom’s left arm, and used his explosions from his other arm, to spin himself around faster then normal, before throwing Izuku over his shoulder.

“Deku! You will always be beneath me!” He shouted in rage, as Izuku hit the ground with enough force to put a small crater into the ground.

The world spun around Izuku for several minutes, as his exposed turned back to it’s normal color, now bloodshot and unfocused, as he struggled to his hands and knees, before crawling away as quickly as he could. Once he had put some distance between himself and Bakugou, he stood up, his Venomless arm and face slightly scorched and bruised, the exposed hair singed and smokey, but he stood up, breathing hard, but not done and out yet. His eye turned pure black once more, as he focused ahead at Bakugou.

“You’ve hide your Quirk, this nasty monster inside you for years!” Bakugou shouted, flexing his fingers as sparks flickered from them. “I know you’ve been mocking me. Why else would Venom talk as much shit as he does? He’s just saying what his owner doesn’t have the balls to!”

‘He’s got a point, you are a bit...submissive.’ Venom mentally muttered, as Izuku glared out at Bakugou, ignoring Venom’s barbs.

“It’s only because you’re so cool, that I want to beat you.” Izuku said defensively, shaking slightly in his boots.

At the control room, the rest of the students watched, many of them taken aback by the short melee.

“He’s completely instinct driven.” Momo muttered in a mixture of fear and awe.

“His attacks are impressive, but barely worthy of even a villain.” Tokoyami muttered, shaking his head.

“Ah, teach, should you step in on this?” Kirishima asked All Might, worried. “This is getting a little out of hand.”

All Might said nothing, merely watching as Izuku struggled to get away from Bakugou. Perhaps he should. He knew these two had history with each other, and he definitely could tell a hated rivalry between the two was brewing deep in their hearts, but part of him wanted to see where this could go, especially what Izuku could do. Despite all appearances of both him and his Quirk, he had the makings of a hero in him.

‘If I want to see how far he can go, I have to see his limits.’ All Might thought. ‘Venom’s already powerful, and if we can push him, there’s no limit to what this Young Man can do.’

Midoriya focused his glare, Venom’s white eye narrowed and focused like a hawk sighting a pidgeon, Izuku’s, though pure black, filled with determination and pent up rage, despite the obvious terror on his body.

“We should retreat.” Venom advised cautiously for once. “We need to recover and...”

“No, we don’t have time!” Izuku muttered back, almost too loudly for either one’s liking, as he locked eyes with Bakugou. “I want to be able to beat you, you idiot!”

“Don’t look at me like that, you damn nerd!” Bakugou yelled at him, holding up one of his palms, as smoke gathered and built up in it once more.

“Uraraka, be ready!” Izuku yelled into his communications device, not waiting for a response as he squared off with Bakugou.

“I’m giving you everything I’ve got Deku!” He shouted, sparks fizzling and building up on his palm, as Izuku-Venom ran straight at him, Venom’s fangs barred in a horrific smile of anticipation and hunger.

He jumped upwards, right above Bakugou’s head, hands out-stretched to strike him, as Bakugou throw up his palm, as energy flared from it. Both yelled at the top of their lungs, as a massive explosion tore through Bakugou’s hand and raced towards them. Izuku could feel Venom shudder and vibrate in fear across his body, but waited...waited, until finally, at the last possible second, he flicked his hand out, and sent a tendril of mass away, latching onto the remains of one the shattered window frames Bakugou had destroyed in his rampage. The explosion, meanwhile, tore through the entire ceiling, racing up through the building, and destroying everything in it’s path.

At that moment, near the top floor, Ochako had grabbed onto a pillar, much to Iida’s confusion, until he felt the ground rumble beneath them. He looked down for a split second, only for a massive fireball to tear apart the ground beneath them, ripping the column free, as Uraraka removed the gravity from it, and swung it like a bat with a confident smile.

“Sorry Iida, but we’ve gotta win this one!” She said, as she swung the pillar, and smashed several of the shattered pieces of stone and rock aside, and towards him at high speed.

Iida lowered his face and raised his arms, trying to block out the flying stones and debris from his face, as they ricocheted off of him. Uraraka dropped the stone pillar and jumped over him and the gap, making herself weightless with her Quirk, as she sailed over head. Iida only had time to look up in shock, before released and latched right onto the bomb.

“Bomb, captured!” She declared in triumph.

“Impossible!” Iida yelled in disbelief.

As she did so, Izuku climbed off the window frame, staggering slightly, as parts of his costume flickered with tiny flames, Venom slowly receding back into his body and fading away, as he staggered, looking absolutely drained. Bakugou didn’t even look at him, eyes locked at the massive hole he had been tricked into making above him, as Izuku staggered backwards, and leaned against a wall, eyes shut tightly.

“The Hero team...Wins!” All Might announced over the communications.

Bakugou looked on in shock, mouth agap, hardly noticing anything changing, as Iida and Uraraka approached. They were stopped by the sudden appearance of All Might, who appeared in the door way leading into the room where Bakugou and Izuku were.

“You two need to get back to the class.” All Might said softly but firmly.

“But Deku...” Uraraka began to protest.

“It’s admirable you’re looking out for your friend, but I need to handle this.” All Might responded with a small smile. “Besides, it’s a bit dangerous to remain here. Don’t get yourselves hurt trying to look out for a friend.”

They both looked uncertain, but after a moment, nodded, and headed for the bottom floors. All Might watched them closely, nodding to himself, before walking into the room. Bakugou still seemed in shock, and All Might wasn’t sure why.

‘I...I lost?’ He thought, not for the first time. ‘With...my own power…?’

He staggered a bit, as All Might put a steady hand on his shoulder. “Now Young Bakugou, this loss is nothing to let yourself get worked up about. Win or lose, you should be able to always take something away and learn from your battles.”

He placed a large, powerful hand on his shoulder, as Bakogou nodded slowly, as though coming to his senses. He looked up at All Might, who patted his shoulder, before moving towards Izuku. Despite seemingly being knocked out, he was leaning against the wall, the only thing one could see, was that his eyes were shut tight, and his breathing was shallow. All Might approached slowly, wanting to make sure he was okay before he called for medical transport or Recovery Girl.

“Young Midoriya, are you alright?” All Might asked softly, trying not to startle or terrify the young man. “Can you stand?”

Izuku nodded slightly, as his eyes slowly opened, entirely black like Venom, as he took a shuddering step, and took a deep breath before his eyes cleared again. He breathed in deeply again, shaking slightly. His hero costume soaked with sweat. All Might could see the bags under his eyes, and his skin looked pale and frigid even.

“I’m calling you medical transport.” All Might said, hitting his device. “Yes, I need help here.”

“I’m fine All Might.” Izuku slurred, looking like he was trying to stay standing. 

“No, you’re not Young Midoriya.” All Might stated, before turning to Bakugou. “Young Bakugou, please, head back to the rest of the class.”

Bakugou silently nodded and disappeared, as two machines appeared, carrying a stretcher between them. Izuku shook his head slightly, as All Might put a gentle hand on Izuku’s shoulder.

“Young Man, just visit Recovery Girl. You don’t look well at all.” All Might said, his booming voice somehow soft and reassuring.

“We’re fine.” Venom said defensivly, sprouting form Izuku’s shoulder.

“I’ll go.” Izuku said, turning to nod to Venom, who stiffened for a moment, before nodding, and retreating back into his body. He laid down, and was carried out.

All Might watched him leave, still very worried. Had he over-exerted himself? Why was Venom being so touchy. He shock his head, and merely waited for Izuku to leave, before looking around to make sure no one was around, before turning off the cameras with the device in his wrist, and deflating and turning back to his skinny form, giving himself some time to breath and cool down, before heading back to the class.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
All Might got back to the class, returning to his muscle form once more before any could see him, as he marched in, holding up his paper and pencil.

“So Class, today the heroes won, but whose the real MVP today?” All Might announced, stopping all of them from their gossip and muttering amongst themselves.

“I know, Teacher.” Momo stated holding up her hand. All Might nodded to her, to give her the go ahead.

“It was Iida of all of them.” She stated, putting her hands on her hips. “Bakugou was aggressive and strong in the fight, but he was too focused on his personal grudge with Izuku to truly reach his full potential. Izuku tried his best to keep Bakugou out of the way, but overextended himself and knocked himself out, taking himself out of the fight.”

She gestured towards Ochako and Iida. “Uraraka was quick to move, but went too far with her powers, and took advantage of the fact that this is only training. Iida meanwhile, adapted to all his opponents, tried to change on the fly, and didn’t let his ego blind him.”

Iida looked absolutely touched, smiling proudly to himself, as he touched his chest. All Might meanwhile, carefully hide his reaction, an eyebrow shooting up in surprise.

‘That...that was better then anything I could’ve said.’ All Might thought, tensing up. ‘How can she be a better teacher then me?’

All Might didn’t stop for a second, not wanting to seem umprepared in front of his students. “Yes, that was perfect, very good Yaoyoruzo!”

“Now, let’s move onto the next Teams!” 

The rest of the teams went by as normal, Todoroki amazing everyone with his ice powers, Tsuyu and Tokoyami coordinating their abilities well, but halfway through, All Might had to stop the exercises after receiving an important call from the Nurse’s Office. He called up one of the other teacher’s on break, and headed out.

It did not take him long to arrive, finding Izuku knocked out in a bed, and Recovery Girl looking over some files. Though he wanted to, he couldn’t afford to deflate himself, least Izuku wake up and see his secret.

“I’m glade your here.” Recovery Girl stated, turning in her chair, and holding up some pictures for All Might to see. “Something was off with him, and I couldn’t do a full X-ray. The machine produces high-frequency noise that might damage him, so I had to use one of my Assistant’s quirks.”

She showed All Might the ‘X-ray’ of Izuku’s organs, and the severe attrophy they had endured. His spleen was gone completely, the lining on his stomach looked rotted, his liver looked like that of a 70 year old chronic alcoholic, and his heart looked like he had endured several cardiac events. All Might was absolutely horrified by what happened.

“I don’t know if it was you and your...lacking training methods, or something else, so I gave him some food that his...Quirk Venom likes.” Recovery Girl said, motioning to a plate that once held chocalate chip cookies and some Chicken nuggets. “Then I went back to have a look.”

She held up the second set of pictures, all of his organs extremely healthy, to the point All Might would’ve sworn they looked healthier then any normal teenager.

“I have no idea what caused the healing, and his Quirk began to act up.” She stated, gesturing to Izuku. “I gave him some medicine to put him to sleep just in case his organs acted up again, and called his mother. He himself was dodgy as well.”

“Should I speak with his mother?” All Might asked, deflating to his skinny form.

“Yes, but I need to know more before I release him.” Recovery Girl replied, looking at Izuku in worry. “If this Quirk can eat him up like that, we need to plan out how to do exercises like this.”

“I encountered him once more he came here, but everything seemed normal.” All Might remarked, looking at Izuku’s prone form. “Even if Venom is a bit...dark in humor.”

“When he wakes up, I need either you or Aizawa, whichever teacher he feels most comfortable with, to talk to him.” Recovery Girl stated.

It was a few minutes before he finally did wake up, and All Might quickly returned to his muscle form to hide his injuries, as Izuku looked around in confusion.

“What happened?” He asked.

“Recovery Girl was rather scared for you, Young Man.” All Might said with a laugh. “She just wanted me to ask you some serious questions is all.”

Venom’s head shifted and twisted out from Izuku’s shoulder, as he looked him over. “Why are you hiding?”

“What?” All Might asked in confusion.

“I can see your organs are damaged, one of my abilities. One lung is almost non-existent.” Venom replied, as Izuku looked at his ‘Quirk’ in shock. “What happened.”

All Might looked at the Symbiote sternly, before merely shrugging, and deflating, his body reducing to that of the sickly, scrawny man from before. Izuku was quiet in an instant, his mouth agap as he watched his hero and idol reveal himself like this. His costume, once form fitting, now a baggy, oversized cloths on him.

All Might undid part of it, revealing the right side of his chest, and the horrible red wound across it. 

“I had a run in with a villain a while back.” His voice far more remote and less bombastic then before. “Destroyed most of my respiratory system. For the sake of everyone and society, I’ve been keeping this a secret, understand, both of you?”

“I gain nothing from revealing it.” Venom hissed, as Izuku silently nodded, eyes focused on the wound.

“Alright, I shared my secret, now it’s your turn.” All Might said, gesturing his head towards Venom. “When I encountered you, I thought it was a strange Quirk, this Venom, but now I’m seeing all sorts of strange things. A weakness to sound and fire, and now Izuku’s organs being atrophied like mine, before regrowing. What’s going on?”

Venom looked at Izuku, then to Recovery Girl, before finally looking back at All Might. He seemed uncertain of what he was about to do, before finally nodding to himself, and speaking with them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So those are all the ones I have ready. I'll be working on the next few in the coming weeks. I plan to include every Symbiote from Marvel, and have them bonded to a character. Some will be easier then others, but that's the plan at least.


	5. The Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Venom and All Might exchange some secrets with one another.

Izuku looked at Venom in silent shock as the Symbiote swayed around his shoulder, looking at the two before him. Finally, the Symbiote spoke.

“I require certain proteins and chemicals to remain active. If we over-exert ourselves in a fight, then I need to replenish myself.” Venom explained. “So, I need to eat certain foods.”

“You ate away his organs.” Recovery Girl said, voice low and angry. “He could’ve died if I hadn’t treated him.”

“I didn’t want to. We work too well together.” Venom said, shaking his head. “I can also...eat people and living flesh, like the Lethal Protector, but I don’t want to. Izuku’s my master, he has more control over me then the barbarian.”

Izuku looked like he wanted to something, but closed his mouth slowly. All Might could tell something was off, but didn’t want to push it.

“I need to build myself back up, then I would’ve gotten food to build him back up.” Venom explained.

All Might nodded, placing a hand on his boney chin, as he looked at Izuku and Venom with slight worry. “So, are you a Quirk?”

Izuku began to sweat bullets, as he silently looked at Venom in fear. The Symbiote seemed taken aback by the question, before nodding. “Yes, why do you ask?”

“No reason.” All Might replied quietly, before standing up. “Listen, what you just saw, with me, this is dangerous stuff. The world always needs All Might. Don’t tell anyone.”

“We have no reason to.” Venom replied. “But I can see your body is not going to be able to handle this stress. What will you do?”

“That’s not for you to know.” All Might explained. “The villain who did this popped up 25 years ago. He’s been dead and gone a while now. He’s not a villain any of you would know.”

Izuku was silent in thought, before he began to mutter to himself about what this could mean, before Venom hissed in annoyance, and manifested several strands of biomass, wrapping around his mouth and silencing him.

“Quit nerding out!” Venom hissed in irritation. “Now is not the time!”

“If you two are well, and she’s alright with it, you can head back to class. It’s almost over, but you’ve got friends worried about you.” All Might said, turning to leave.

“I can’t believe it.” Izuku muttered.

“That you have friends?” Venom asked, sounding innocent despite the sarcasm.

“That All Might is...” Izuku began, before looking angrily at the Symbiote. “And that you almost killed me.”

“We are fine though, are we not?” Venom asked. “Besides, your teacher knows what he’s doing. And I’ve told you before I would snack on your organs.”

“I thought you were joking!” Midoriya said in shock.

Izuku said nothing else, and fell silent, as they walked out to meet with the rest of the class before the day ended. Izuku wasn’t sure he was ready for whatever it was that would come up at the end of the class, but tried his best to mentally prepare himself.

As he got to class and opened the door, he wasn’t sure what to expect. He opened the door, and almost immediately upon stepping in, was surrounded by his classmates, each talking excitedly, unable to contain themselves. His eyes widened in surprise, one of the boys speaking about how his efforts pushed them to do all the better themselves in their trials. Countless names were spoken, Mina, Tsuyu, Karashima. It was almost dizzying how many wanted to talk to him.

In his time at the other schools, people usually ignored him due to him being Quirkless, or after he got Venom, were too scared, or disgusted, by his new ‘Quirk’s’ repulsive words. Now, he had the entire class jumping to congratulate and know more about him and what he was doing during the fight. He was briefly taken away from his conversations, when Uraraka entered the room with Denki, the two talking about lunch, before Uraraka ran up.

“Deku, are you alright, you looked so out of it after the fight.” She asked, worried. “People were saying it looked serious.”

“No, it’s nothing.” Izuku said with an awkward laugh. “Venom just, overextended himself a bit. And me.”

“That’s a relief, you really need to take care of yourself in a fight.” Iida stated. “My brother always said the key is to pace yourself while you push your limits. If you go too far, you won’t be able to help anyone!”

Izuku looked around for a moment, before seeing Bakugou’s empty desk. “Where’s Kacchan?”

“Oh, Bakugou? He was having a fit since he lost, so he left early.” Kirishima said.

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

Izuku was quick to leave and meet him outside, wanting desperatly to straighten things out. Venom was of course quick to reprimand him and remind him that, no, they didn’t need to explain anything to him. Bakugou had made their lives miserably, and had nearly killed Venom. Izuku, of course didn’t listen, and meet him while he was still at the front gates, on his way out.

“Wait, Kacchan!” He called.

“If you came to rub it in Deku, I don’t want to hear it!” Bakugou called, stopping but not turning around.

“I just wanted to explain, as best I can...” Izuku began, looking down softly at his feet. “That this isn’t even a Quirk.”  
Bakugou looked at him in a mixture of his usual brand of rage, and now confusion, not saying a word as Izuku spoke on.

“It’s something else, and even after years of having it, I haven’t worked everything out.” He explained, as Venom tensed up within his body, making every signal that he didn’t like where this was going. “One day, Venom and I, we’re going to beat you, once we’ve worked out our limits, and pushed past them.”

Bakugou narrowed his eyes at him, eerily silent for a moment, as though he was processing everything. For a moment, Izuku hoped he would accept what he said, perhaps accept the challenge, become rivals of some kind and not let things spiral out further.

“What the hell? Not a Quirk? Are you kidding me?” Bakugou snapped, voice slowly rising as his rage increased. “But I guess you did come here to rob your shitty victory in my face!”

Izuku looked on in shock, as Venom tried to take control of his legs and get him to leave this area, but Izuku fought back, keeping his feet rotted. He wasn’t done yet here.

“Ah hell! And I...I lost to you of all people today!” Bakugou shouted, looking down in shame. “And if that weren’t enough, that Icy bastard completely outdid me! How can I measure up to that!”

“That one girl was completely right! Everything she said was right!” Bakugou shouted, holding his face in shame. “Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!”

He glared up at Izuku, focusing a death glare that even Venom shuttered at the sight of, tears beginning to form at the corners of his eyes. “From here on out, ya hear me? From here on out, I’m gonna beat you all!”

He turned on his heel, heading away as he rubbed his eyes with his sleeve. “Enjoy the win Deku! It won’t happen again!”

Izuku watched him leave, as Izuku let out a small sigh, and Venom sprouted from his back, watching him leave for a moment, before turning to his host. “Wow, what an asshole.”

Suddenly, something red and blue blurred past them, almost knocking them both down with the force of the wind, as All Might appeared behind Kacchan.

“Baku! Gou! I found you!” All Might shouted, placing a hand on Bakugou’s shoulder, before he lowered his voice. “Now, Young Man, having self-pride like that is important. You’ve got the makings of a Pro! But...”

“All Might, get your damn hands off me.” Bakugou growled like a dog ready to snap, before glaring at him over his shoulder. “I’m gonna be a hero who surpasses even you!”

All Might let him go with a simple, brisk move of his wrist, simply shaking his head as Bakugou left. ‘Aaaand He’s back...This teacher buisness sure is hard. I’ll have to watch him carefully this coming year.’

Bakugou’s fuse had been lite, but Izuku was determined above all else to meet him and prove he could go beyond him. He made that his resolution, his entire goal, to accomplish as he and Venom moved on with becoming heroes. Venom, however, was mostly silent, strangely withdrawing into his own thoughts for the moment.

Whatever happened next, was up to Fate.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
In the darkened, forgotten corners of the city, in a seedy bar that few even looked at anymore, much less knew about, The dark, run-down place looked so nondescript, one could forget it if they looked away for even a second. It seemed unimportant, not anywhere even a bored alcoholic or party goer would go to unless they had been kicked out of the more important places.

In this shady establishment, seated at the dusty old bar, on the creaky floor boards, was a young man, with silver hair, all black cloths, and gray, almost-rotted and stiff hands along his arms, neck and over his face. He threw a paper on the counter in front of him, as an older gentlemen, dressed in a dress shirt and vest with a tie, with a body seemingly made from black-colored smoke, watched him closely.

“Can you believe this garbage?” The younger one asked. “It says he’s a teacher.”

He took a sip of his drink, before laying it on the paper, right over All Might’s face within the page, as the liquid fanned out and darkened both the picture, and the surrounding text.

“Hey,” The Hand-covered man said after a moment, his voice sounding a bit more gleeful. “What do you think would happen, if the villains, finally killed the legendary Symbol of Peace?”

Both fell silent, as they looked over at the stoic, hulking frame of the barely human-looking beast standing near the door to the back of the bar. A creature as black as night, it’s top skin peeled away to reveal it’s brain, with jagged, pure white teeth, and wide alert eyes, a body so thick and heavily built, the floor should’ve crumbled beneath it.

The young man covered hands’ eyes gleamed with joy at the mere idea of spreading malice and mayhem in the times to come. Very, very soon, he would put his work to the test.  
\\\\\\\\\\\  
The day after began as any other, Izuku awakening early to prepare breakfast and get ready for school, while Venom made his usual remarks and comments to him while he worked, often summoning tendrils to latch onto and grab objects for his host as they worked.

“So what do you expect to happen next?” Venom asked, summoning two tentacles from Izuku’s left wrist to latch onto and bring him some spices and salts.

“What do you mean?” Izuku asked as he put the finishing touches together.

“What exercises and such do your teachers have planned?” Venom wondered, as Izuku grabbed the objects and Venom’s tentacles disappeared. “I hope it’s another battle simulation for us to test our claws on.”

“You almost burned to death, and I also had my organs eaten.” Izuku muttered, shaking his head wearily. “I want something far easier to practice on.”

“That’s no fun.” Venom hissed. “I want to test my abilities against your class.”

“We’ll have fun another time, work comes first.” Izuku replied, sighing to himself as he shock his head.

“Fine.” Venom said with a huff, like a disheartened child.

Izuku reflected not for the first time that, for all his savagery and lust for blood, Venom could act like a spoiled and very short-tempered child sometimes. Part of him almost wondered if this was common with all the Symbiotes on Klyntar, or if Venom was just special. Then again, he would rather not find out about or meet other members of the species.

“Finish up!” Venom commanded, interrupting his thoughts. “We need to eat, before we get a repeat of yesterday.”

Izuku ground his teeth together, wanting to say something back to the Symbiote, but decided against it. Venom already knew how he felt, and given Izuku had, for the last three days, not had any tattor tots, sent a clear enough message to the Symbiote about what he had done. He knew Venom didn’t much of a choice, but having his organs eaten and nearly dying didn’t make him happy either.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
After finishing their meal, Izuku hurried out the door and was on his way, going his usual route to the school. The day was largely the same, with him going his usual route, and stopping by a shop owned by a Mrs. Chen. An immigrant was the frequent target of low-level thugs looking for easy money, he had apparently saved her during Venom’s rampage. 

Izuku walked in, the bell above the place ringing as he entered.

“Hi Mrs. C.” Izuku greeted happily, as she looked up from her magazine.

“Hello Izuku.” Mrs. Chen greeted back. “Is tall, dark and ravenous still with you?”

“Yep.” Izuku said with a nod, as he went around trying to pick out a snack for later in class, as Venom appeared from his shoulder. “Hello Mrs. Chen.”

She merely nodded to him, and went back to her magazine. Venom shuddered slightly, looking to Izuku.

“Why doesn’t she like me?” He whispered in anger. “I ate three guys trying to rob her! Left no evidence mind you!”

“Maybe that has something to do with it?” Izuku suggested, as he picked out some snacks that Venom enjoyed. “People don’t like cannibalism. Usually.”

“It’s not cannibalism if I eat humans. It’s not like you’re really eating them.” Venom stated, confused at the suggestion. “Besides, if they didn’t want to be eaten, they shouldn’t have been committing crime.”

Izuku merely shook his head in dismay, and grabbed a few of his snacks, and left to continue his trek. As he out the door, the bell signaling his exit, he almost ran right into Tokoyami, also on his way. H walked e froze up, as his peer almost didn’t seem to notice him, before stopping and giving Izuku a sideways glance.  
“Greetings, Midoriya.” Tokoyami said simply.

“Oh, Tokoyami, good morning!” He said nervously.

Izuku lingered for a moment, before stepping alongside the Raven-headed classmate.

“So I didn’t really get to see much of the other matches.” Izuku said, as they walked along. “How did you and Asui do?”

“Well enough to win.” Tokoyami replied. “How are you doing? I’ve heard some things about what Venom can do? Did you recover alright?”

Izuku shrugged. “Yeah, I just needed to eat. He can’t draw that strength form no where, even if he’s still on probation for what he did.”

Venom appeared from his shoulder, glaring at Tokoyami, studying him like he studied most people, sizing him up slightly, though the boy didn’t seem bothered by him. “Why did you want to talk with us that last day? You’ve said your Quirk is similar.”

Izuku was grateful for once that Venom was acting as ‘normal’ as he could manage, eyeing Tokoyami slightly, as he shrugged.

“I have Dark Shadow, a spirit-like creature that manifests from my shadows to fight for me.” He explained. “I’m rather worried about him getting up to mischief at times, so I try to keep him under wraps.”

“That’s an amazing Quirk.” Izuku breathed, smiling broadly. “Hey, maybe you can join Iida, Uraraka and me at lunch later.”

Tokoyami seemed to consider it for a moment. “Certainly, as long Dark Shadow doesn’t cause any trouble.”

A large, ethereal limb appeared form under his jacket, black and purple in coloration, with four large fingers, forming a thumbs up. Tokoyami merely shrugged, as the two continued onwards. The rest of the time was dominated by small talk and all, Venom and Dark Shadow retreating back into their respective ‘hosts’ to disappear from sight.

By time they made it to the front of the academy, the area around the frontgate was swarmed by various reporters, camera crews and others trying to get interviews with the various students and staff on their way in. Izuku and Tokoyami were on their way in, trying to sneak by, when a young reporter jammed her microphone in his face. Venom immediately snapped out, growling at her.

She seemed completely unperturbed. “So what’s it like learning from All Might? And...you must be the student whose rumored to be related to the ‘Lethal Protector’ or Jet.”

“Uh, I have to an appointment to keep!” Izuku stuttered nervously.

“Keep away from my host!” Venom snarled. “You’ll find out how similar we are to Jet in due time!”

Izuku held up a nervous hand to his Symbiote’s small, miniature head, as they walked away. “Calm it down dude.”

“I’ve been bound to a report before, these corporate media types are just vultures and slaves to their rich owner’s whims.” Venom snarled in agitation. “The media should be holding irresonpible heroes accountable, not racking up crap on All Might.”

“Alright, but you can’t pull the moral-crusader-revoluionary-thing when you’re on the run from the law.” Izuku muttered, as they walked past Uraraka getting interviewed.

“We’re on the run.” Venom countered simply, as he moved back into Izuku’s body. “Besides, we have to keep outsiders from learning too much.”

“So what does All Might look like? We’ve heard he’s getting ready to retire.” Another reported asked Uraraka.

She looked uncertianlly, before scratching her chin and smiling nervously. “Well, he’s. uh. He’s really muscly.”

She flexed for show, as they merely shook their heads in disappointment, before moving onto other pickings to get to. They then spotted Iida, swarming over the tall, athletically built student expectingly.

“How is All Might’s teaching style? Is he really prepared for the teaching role?” 

“Yes, I am quite humbled by his pressence here! It reminds me of the goals I have set forth and what I seek to achieve, with such a mighty, powerful and inspiring hero teaching and advising, reminding me we can all potentially be number one!” He stated, before going on and on with his ideals of heroism and teaching, The press members, the reporters, all began to doze off and their eyes glazed over as he went on.

Finally, they made their way to the frontgate, bored of Tenya’s long-winded speeches, to the one adult, obviously a hero teacher within the school. They mobbed around him, eager for an answer, though many were taken aback by Aizawa’s appearance.

“Is All Might…?” The Female reporter began, before cringing slightly at his appearance. “Are you really a Pro? You look really messed up.”

“All Might isn’t here today.” He muttered tiredly, before shooing them away. “Now go, you’re disturbing my students.”

He turned and left as the final students shuttled into the frontgates. The female reporter glared for a second, before running after him, trying to get in with the other staff and students.

“Now hold on a sec…!” She shouted, as a warning alarm sounded, before a massive series of gates slammed shut in front of her. She stopped a split second before it all closed and locked in, preventing anyone else from entering.

“That must be the UA barrier.” One of the others commented. “It closes automatically if it detects someone who doesn’t have a Pass Badge or don’t match any camera images.”  
“Yeah, there’s even more crazy sensors inside, some of have said.” Another remarked, pulling down his camera, and adjusting some of the pieces. “They really don’t want people getting in.”

“What could they be hiding about All Might then?” The Female reporter asked, as they all gathered to talk amongst themselves.

No one noticed the silver-haired stranger standing over a hill, just a few feet form them, watching and listening to them closely. No one seemed to notice him for quite a while, and by time anyone turned to the hill, after seeing him out the corner of their eyes, he was gone without a trace.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The rest of the day was normal, as normal as the class could be anyway, Bakugou simmering with rage in front of Izuku, the class gossiping among themselves, Venom out and speaking with Izuku, as Aizawa entered, Venom retreating out of sight, as he stepped up to the front of the room, an icy aura around him, as the class looked on in slight apprehension. He looked at them, before breathing in. Something was bothering him, but no one wanted to brooch the subject.

“I’ve reviewed all your fighting results and footage, and I’m somewhat impressed.” He stated dryly. “Katsuki, you’ve got potential. Don’t sit on your loss and sulk like a child.”

Bakugou looked at the window with a huff, muttering. “Yeah, whatever.”

“Midoriya, you’ve got an interesting Quirk. We’ll have to talk about it with your mother after class.” Aizawa stated.

Izuku didn’t react immediately, keeping a stone face, even as his thoughts were immediately filled with ‘Oh crap’, repeated around 50 times. Venom’s voice sounded within his head.

“Don’t panic you idiot, we’ll be fine.” He hissed in annoyance. “Just play it natural and don’t be your usual loser self. Actually, maybe I should do the talking.”

‘Hell no.’ Izuku almost said aloud, before merely mentally shooting the message to Venom.

“Fine, fine, just don’t be stupid.” Venom muttered. “Or more so then usual.”

“Next, we will be working on something that will define the rest of your career as heroes.” Aizawa stated, looking out coldly across the student and the classroom.

Every student took a sharp breath in, cringing slightly at what he would say next.

“You must choose a class President and Vice President.” Aizawa declared, grabbing his sleeping bag.

Though no one said anything, the tense silence immediately lifted, as everyone gave a tiny sign of relief. Just normal school things.

Immediately, the class broke into chaos, as everyone began to jostle and throw up their hands to try and get everyone else to vote for them, and support their run. Kirishima and Mina gave the heartiest shouts, as Mineta was busy giving a promise of some sort about thigh length and skirt shortness. 

“This is getting annoying.” Growled Venom, coming out from Izuku’s shoulder. “Must you all be so loud?”

“Relax.” Izuku said, placing a hand on top of his small head. 

“Everyone, quiet down!” Iida shouted above the chaos, everyone falling silent as he stood from his desk. “This office requires ambition, but more so then anything, it requires ability!”

Iida looked up, his glasses glinting in the light. “As such, it requires absolute trust from it’s supporters. It requires a vote from everyone here!”

“But Iida, we’ve only just meet each other.” Tsuyu pointed out, placing a finger on her chin. “Is that really enough time to build trust?”

“Then that simply proves whoever gets the most votes will be the most trusted!” Iida remarked, before turning to Aizawa. “Teacher, would you mind this?”

“Whatever, just get it done before my nap.” Aizawa muttered, zipping up his sleeping bag, lying down, and quietly slurping up his juice box.

“Then let us begin our election!” Iida declared, as Venom looked to Izuku.

“Our friend is certainly energetic.” Venom whispered.

After all the votes were counted, in which Venom tried to claim his vote should count as well, and was promptly told he couldn’t count, because of him being a Quirk. Venom grumbled in agitation and anger, but said nothing else, though Izuku swore he could hear Venom grumbling that the whole class were “racist fascists” and something about denying him his rights. He almost wanted to roll his eyes.

‘What a drama queen.’ He thought with a sigh to himself, as the votes were countered out.

“Am not!” Venom snarled like a dejected child.

“Alright, Midoriya gets three, and Yaoyourzu gets two.” Aizawa said with a sigh, looking up from his sleeping bag, as though he didn’t want to stand up.

“People voted for me?!” Izuku asked in surprise, as he came to the front, Momo looking at him with slight worry, and weariness. Venom popped out of his shoulder, as Momo looked at it with slight apprehension. “Yeah, who would vote for a loser like you?”

Iida held his head down, looking like he was struggling to keep it together. “I didn’t get a single vote?”

“You mean you didn’t even vote for yourself?” Sero asked, mystified.

“Ambition is one thing, the ability is another!” Iida said, shaking his head.

“Let’s just continue on.” Aizawa grumbled, unzipping his sleeping bag, before muttering to himself. “I didn’t even get a good nap.”

“I still can’t figure out how you got that many votes.” Venom hissed into Izuku’s ear, not disappearing form sight.

“It’s not a mistake.” Izuku said aloud, still in shock.

“It has to be.” Venom said, shaking his head. “You’re like completely unequipped for anything resembling power.”

“I know.” Izuku replied, shaking his head.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
By the time lunch rolled around, Izuku was practically running to get his food there. He didn’t know why he was so ravenous. Perhaps it was nerves from the ‘election’, perhaps Venom was just burning through their food faster out of spite for not getting to fight anyone or practice fighting. Whatever the reason, Izuku was ready to eat half the lunchroom be time he got his tray and was seated with Iida and Uraraka. As the two sat down, Tokoyami sat down with them, looking slightly put off, but seated next to Iida.

“I invited Tokoyami to hang out with us, that’s alright, right?” Izuku asked.

“Of course.” Iida replied, taking a sip of his water. “We’re not an elite’s club.”

“Thank you both.” Tokoyami said quietly.

“Look at that.” Venom said within Izuku’s head, hidden from view. “You got another friend. You’re getting good at this friend thing.”

‘Stop.’ Izuku thought in annoyance, before clearing his throat. “I’m not sure about this whole Class President thing.”

“You can do it Deku.” Uraraka said with a warm smile, as Iida nodded.

“Indeed, your determination and spirit is an inspiration to all of us.” Tenya remarked. “It’s why I voted for you.”

“Myself as well.” Tokoyami stated. “If you can keep Venom under control, you can do anything.”

Izuku was surprised at their words, before Uraraka looked at Iida.

“Did you want to be president though, Iida?” She asked, munching on rice. “You’ve got the classes and smart guy looks and everything.”

‘She really says whatever’s on her mind.’ Izuku thought as Venom shifted beneath his skin slightly. “Yeah, she’s a weird dork like you. You two would….nevermind.”

Before he could question what Venom meant, Iida merely shrugged. “Ambition and suitability are very different matters. I made the choice, and felt I was not yet ready to lead.”

“The way you talk Iida, do you come from an elite family?” She asked, pumping both fists.

“Yes, you seem quite confident in your ideals of leadership.” Tokoyami remarked.

“I don’t like to speak on it, but yes, I come from a renowned hero family.” Iida replied, eating some more rice. “Tell me, do you know of the Hero Ingenium?”

Izuku beamed excitedly. “Yes! He’s an amazing Pro-Hero! He employs more then 65 side-kicks across his home city alone!”

He blabbered on with joy, as Iida merely raised an eyebrow. “Very well informed.”

Iida stood up straight with pride. “Well, he’s my oldest brother. It is his devotion to the rules and regulations, and his tireless protection of the people, that inspired my own becoming a hero.”

‘He looks up to his brother, the way I look up to All Might.’ Izuku thought.

“Hmm yes. Good goals to shoot for.” Venom remarked within his mind, as Izuku raised an eyebrow. ‘No snarky remarks from you?’

“On Klyntar, we care little for familial connection or even have concepts of family.” Venom explained. “There is the host and the Klyntaran, and their team, nothing else. But I realize you humans, and others, are different from us. I wouldn’t degrade an ally.”

‘Look at you, actually caring and being nice to people.’ Izuku mocked him mentally with a small grin. ‘You getting soft, big guy?’

“I can be nice when I want!” Venom growled in agitation. “He should be encourage, his combat abilities will assist our own, nothing more!”

“That’s a good person to follow Iida. I’m certain you’ll become the best with a brother like that.” Tokoyami remarked, Dark Shadow’s hand appearing to give him a thumbs up.

“Thank you all, but I...” He began, before an alarm blarred over everything, Uraraka pushed forwards by a panicking student, grabbing her bowl of rice, and holding it protectively.

Izuku yelled in pain, holding his ears, as Venom’s own form flickered over his own. Uraraka rushed to his side, helping him to his feet, as all the students stood up.

“Security Level 3 has been breached!” A robotic voice announced. “All Students, please evacuate in an orderly fashion!”

“Level 3?” Tokoyami asked.

“It means someone has infiltrate the school!” An older teen replied, looking around. “It’s never happened before here, it must be serious!”

The students began to run out in a panic, the crowds practically sweeping them along, as Uraraka helped Izuku along, who was still in agony from the shrill sound of the siren overhead, his hands pressed firmly against his ears, as pieces of Venom wiggled and squirmed from his skin. If this kept up, he would lose his Symbiote in the chaotic noise, and who knew what would happen then. His eyes watered as he tried to focus ahead, and get away from the malefic sound all around him. Iida, meanwhile, was laser focused, looking around as best he could to find the source of the chaos and figure out how to counter the anarchy that had taken hold over the school. He looked out the window, to see the reporters from earlier. He pressed himself against the class, eyes scanning the area for any malevolent figures among the press, but found none.

He turned quickly to Uraraka, holding out his hand to her as the crowds surged around them. She was concentrated on helping Izuku, as although the sirens had stopped, he had obviously damaged himself. Random pieces of Venom manifested from his body, before disappearing beneath him his body again. Tokoyami stepped calmly behind Iida, manifesting Dark Shadow’s bird-like form in front of him.

“Tokoyami, I need your help.” Iida stated.

“I can see that.” Tokoyami replied, as Dark Shadow circled around the two. “What do you need of me.”

Iida pointed to the exit just ahead. “Get me up there.”

Tokoyami scratched his beak-like chin, before Dark Shadow took Iida in it’s arms. “Certainly. Though this will be dangerous.”

“Just let me worry about that, alright?” Iida said, as Dark Shadow threw him with as much force as it could use with hurting him. 

He flew overhead, most of the students stopping to watch him in shock, as he activated the jets within his legs to boost forward and slam into the sign above the exit doors. He plastered himself onto it, before taking a deep breath in, and shouting down to them.

“Everyone! Calm down! Everything is fine!” He shouted down to them. “It’s just the press! We have nothing to worry about. This is UA, calm down, and act in a manner worthy of this school.”

Uraraka and Izuku looked up in awe as he commanded the students, everyone instantly calming down, and listening intently as he gave them direction and focus. Now, seeing the press corps outside, most of the students were able to calm down and realize this most likely wasn’t a villain trying to infiltrate and murder them all.

The police were there within an hour, and managed to escort almost all of the press out of the premise. Those that chose to stay outside the barrier had little to no reason to try and test their luck and wisely chose to leave as well. Izuku took some time to recover from the high noise, but Venom managed to repair his damaged nerve endings and systems in time for the next period’s class.

After dealing with some of the police and all, Aizawa was back in his class room without a word, and began to organize the choosing of other Student council members. As Izuku thought over the past events, he came to a decision.

“I just want to say, that after today, I don’t think I can be the best student council president of this class.” Izuku declared. “I think Iida should step into the role. His intelligence and quick-thinking really saved the day.”

He turned towards the bored-looking Aizawa for confirmation. “Is that alright teacher.”  
“If the rest of the class wants it, whatever. Let’s no waste time.” Aizawa muttered, rolling his eyes.

The rest class looked to Iida, as they began talking amongst themselves.

“Sure, the way he handled the whole evacuation thing was badass.” Kirishima stated with a grin.

“Yeah, I couldn’t believe he handled it so well.” Kaminari said, shrugging. “I’m down for it.”

The rest of class, except for Jirou, spoke in favor of it, giving thumbs up and other signs of approval. As Aizawa sighed. 

“Fine, then Iida is now the class president.” He grumbled, shaking his head slightly. “Can we just move on?”

“I got more votes then him though...” Momo muttered to herself in annoyance, as Izuku made his way to his seat, not hearing her.

“Good job running from your duties.” Venom muttered inside his ear.

‘We both know I couldn’t handle it.’ Izuku thought simply. ‘Iida is the far better leader.’

“I am not used to you humans. When we receive a job, we accept it without question. No matter what.” Venom muttered. “We didn’t even vote for our leaders, the Team Leader always was the best, and if not, the others could challenge him for position.”

‘You were part of a team right?’ Izuku asked.

“Correct.”

‘They haven’t appeared though.’

“Probably died on orbital entry.” Venom said simply. “They were made up of Scream, Mayhem and...Riot.”

‘Which one lead the team?’ Izuku asked.

“….” Venom seemed hiestant for a moment, shifting within Izuku’s body for a moment, before speaking. “Riot. I don’t want to speak of him.”

Izuku nodded slightly as he sat down behind Bakugou. Something about the way Venom said his name gave Izuku the feint feeling that, for all of Venom’s brutality, this Riot might be worse, somehow. He just hoped he never meet the guy.

At the front of the school, the Principal and a number of other teachers were gathered outside, looking at what remained of the UA gate. It was one of the most highly advanced pieces of technology from Japan, and the world. Built with technology from Detnerate, G-Force and countless other scientific bodies that wished to help protect the future of heroics.

And somehow, someone had managed to reduce it to rusted chunks and ashy pieces as though it was nothing.

Nexu folded his hands behind himself, worried. “Whoever did this was no simple reporter. This had to be the work of a villain. The only question left, is this a simple act, or the start of something worse.”

He turned to the gathered Heroes around him, nodding. “Make sure the students avoid the front entrance until we clean this up.”

Though everyone had the heavy feeling they were being watched, no one noticed the young man dressed all in black, watching them from a darkened alley, his eyes focused and hate-filled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was hoping to have the meeting between the heroes and Izuku's mom pop up, but as I was writing, I kinda forgot. I will definitely have Venom reveal himself fully to Inko and talk with her in depth.


	6. The Tide of War

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Venom and Izuku face their first and most dangerous foe.

4 Year Earlier.

The darkened back alleys of Tokyo were mostly abandoned, especially now that some strange space object had come crashing into one of the building, taking a good chunk off the side, and smashing into the dumpsters. A tall man, dressed in a dark Valentino suit approached, adjusting his tie slightly. He leaned heavily on a cane, despite not appearing that old, and his face was covered by a strange breathing device of some sort. No one was around to see much of anything, his many Quirks not picking up any nearby life signs.

“My my, exactly as my contact predicted.” He muttered, his face turning into a twisted smile. “I didn’t expect you to show up here, however?”

Out of the burning wreckage, a shifting, shimmering mass of silver rolled out of the flames of the wreck, carefully avoiding everything. Flecks of red appeared in it’s body, resembling crimson drops of blood in the silver mixture. It headed towards him, as the man carefully approached.

“I think you’ll be fine with us.” He stated, as he held out his arm. “I will need you soon.”

The slime leaped forward, about to merge into his arm, and was about to merge with his body, before the creature was locked in mid-air by an unseen force.

“Air manipulation is a difficult Quirk, but it works for the job at hand.” The man remarked, as an assistant appeared behind him, carefully positioning a cylinder of some sort, before the creature was forced into it. “But I need you stored away for the moment.”

The Cylinder hissed as the air was completely purified and all contaminants removed. A pure holding cell, to keep the Symbiote inside of. The man held it up for a moment, before disappearing from sight.

“I need you, and your kind, but not for me.” The man remarked. “You are to wait. Tomura simply isn’t ready.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Aizawa stood in front of the class, mentally preparing himself for the day ahead. Taking care of the students was difficult enough for a man of his disposition, but having to work with All Might was going to make things more hectic. 

‘He’s the biggest kid here.’ Aizawa thought to himself, as the class got seated. 

He looked at Izuku from the corner of his eye, his hair covering up much of his face, making it difficult for anyone else to see him and where he was looking. Izuku had shown himself a strong classmate, but that Quirk of his still bothered him. What was it? And how had two figures, if they were separate, shown up in the same general city area, within a few months of each other.

And were they separate?

‘Perhaps Jet’s user got his organs eaten from the inside out.’ Aizawa thought. ‘I couldn’t imagine a more fitting fate.’

He banished the thoughts from his mind, focusing ahead on the task at hand, before holding up a card for the class to see. “Alright class, today, All Might, myself and a third Hero will be overseeing your training in a new field.”

The card showed the words rescue as he spoke. “It’s Disaster Relief, First-Aid and fires and flood.” 

The class began to talk among themselves in excitement. Aizawa simply glared at them, silencing them all in an instant, before he cleared his throat. “I’m not finished.”

He clicked a button in his hand, the uniform racks popping out from the wall beside him. “As many of your costumes are either heavily damaged, or ill-suited for the task, you’re free to just wear your gym uniforms.”

“Sorry Izuku.” Venom muttered.

“The location is remote.” He continued, before pointing outside. “We’ll be taking a bus there. So be ready in the next 15 minutes.”

Izuku chose his gym uniform over his still ruined custom. It didn’t matter either way. Venom would cover up everything anyway. He could’ve gone in his Pajamas and it wouldn’t change anything. Venom was, however, in a foul mood. Or a fouler one then usual.

“Rescue missions.” Venom growled with...venom in his voice. “This is disgusting. And beneath us.”

“A hero’s gotta be able to do everything.” Izuku muttered. “Perhaps you could learn to like apply it to combat or something.”

“Hey Izuku man, I get Venom talks a lot, but careful how you do it.” Kirishima said behind him, dressed in his strange, practically shirtless costume. “Too much outloud will make you look nuts.”

“Yeah sorry. He sounds like he’s always with me all the time.” Izuku said nervously. “Like, out with me, I mean.”

He continued on towards the bus, as Venom’s head appeared from his shoulder. “I hope something fun happens.”

“Relax, it’s only boring if you let it be boring.” Izuku remarked.

“Fortune cookie nonsense.” Venom grumbled.

Izuku wanted to remark how that might be a tad racist, conflating Japanese and Chinese sensibilities, but stopped himself. Venom probably just saw humans as one massive form. Race meant nothing to him. Just potential hosts and meals.

“Alright everyone, we are going to organize our seating arrangements by student number!” Iida announced, cutting off his thoughts. “Let’s do this quickly and efficiently!”

Venom turned to Izuku, taken aback slightly. “He’s quite energetic today.”

“Yeah, he’s gone into full overdrive.” Kirishima remarked, crossing his arms in front of himself.

Venom seemed surprised at first that someone in class had replied to his remarks, but merely bobbed his head slightly. Uraraka walked behind them, in her costume as well, before looking at Izuku oddly.

“Is your costume still damaged?” She asked.

“Yeah, not that it matter when you have Venom here.” He said, gesturing to the miniature alien head by him.

“If you light me on fire I’m eating your liver.” Venom threatened, as Izuku gave him a playful smack on the head.

The class filed in, only to find the bus was not structured like the traditional ones Iida had planned. He clenched his teeth in agitation, and sat down on the first seat, holding his head in his hands, as the rest of the class filed in.

“All my planning, for nothing!” He said gloomily.

Mina sat down beside him, patting him on the back. “It’s all good Iida. You tried!”

Izuku was seated next to another student, Tsuyu. She wasn’t exactly emotive, but perhaps that had something to do with her frog-like abilities and features. They sat down for a moment, no one saying anything, as the bus started up and drove off to the secret facility. Small gossip broke out among the various students. As turn after turn was made by the bus, she placed her finger on her chin.

“You know, I always speak my mind about most things, Midoriya.” She commented out of the blue, as Izuku looked to her in surprise.

“Oh, is that so Asui?” Izuku replied, uncertain of where this was going.

“Just call me Tsu.” She suggested.

“Oh..alright.” He said.

“That Quirk of yours, it’s very similar to that Vigilante, Jet that was all over the news a while back.” Tsuyu commented.

Izuku stiffened slightly, before Venom shifted around his neck and back slightly, sounding like he was hissing into his ear. 

“Don’t act stupid, Deku.” He snarled in a low voice.

“People have said that. A lot actually.” Izuku said. Though Venom shifted nervously, he didn’t even notice Aizawa looking at him with a curious gaze. “I’m sure it’s a coincidence.”

Luckily for him and his poor lying skills, Kirishima spoke up for him. “Y’know, that might be similar, but Venom’s a cool dude. Even during that one battle, he didn’t even go for the head.”

“Would’ve liked to.” Venom Muttered in Izuku’s head, causing him to shutter slightly.

“A Quirk like that though, that will be prime Hero material.” Kirishima stated with a smile. “You’ll be like Gang Orca and Godzillo, big scary dude with badass fighting ability and a flashy Quirk.”

He held up his arm, before it hardened with a sharp click, gaining a rock-like exterior. “Wish mine was as flashy. Hard to do much with a Hardening Quirk.”

“I wouldn’t be so negative, I think that’s a great Quirk.” Izuku replied with a smile.

“Indeed.” Venom remarked, appearing out of his host’s body. “It’s not to different from when I modify my molecular structure around Deku’s body to enhance our strength and hitting power.”

“Well, thanks Ven.” Kirishima said, shrugging slightly. “I guess that does make sense. We even both some manly fangs on us too.”

“As far as flash and strength, none are as dazzling as my laser.” Aoyama remarked.

Mina put a hand on his shoulder, smiling a bit. “Yeah, but it’s kinda lame if you gives you a tummy ache, sweetie.”

Kirishima rubbed his chin, nodding to himself, while Aoyama looked like he had been kicked in the shine, Eijoru’s confidence seemingly restored, while Aoyama’s had been deflated. Venom seemed to consider his words for a moment, as Izuku leaned back to relax in his seat, before shooting Venom a mental message.

‘What’s with the emotional support?” He asked, taken aback by how nice he was. “Did Bakugou almost burning you alive soften you up?”

“No. I mean, I did once think of us as destined for greater things and all, but...their abilities are rather useful.” Venom remarked defensively. “Many of them are quite powerful. I would almost be tempted to take one of them as a host.”

‘Why stick with me then?’ Izuku thought, slightly nervous at Venom’s tone.

“You’re an easy host. The first one of a species is always the most useful.” Venom explained simply. “The others would be harder for me to get into.”

Izuku had a feeling Venom was lying again, but didn’t want to push the issue with him. Kirishima put one of his boots over his knee, as he looked out at the back of the bus. “Yeah, if anyone here has flashy Quirks, it’s Todoroki and Bakugou.”

The red and white haired boy was busy napping in the back seat, while Bakugou looked as though he wanted to say something, but decided not to. Tsuyu, however, was not as tacit.

“Yeah, but he’s always angry so he’ll never be that popular.” She stated.

Bakugou bolted up, eyes focused in rage, as Aizawa watched him wearily. “What did you say?! I’ll kick your ass!”

“You see?” Tsuyu said, pointing to him.

“You know, we’ve only just met you, so it’s kinda telling we can all tell your personality is flaming garbage mixed with crap.” Denki remarked with a wry smile.

“You’ll all regret the day you ever applied here!” Bakugou shouted in impotent rage, as many of them chuckled at his empty threats.  
‘Bakugou’s getting bullied while I’m the popular one.’ Izuku thought, shaking his head in shock. ‘I can’t even comprehend how weird UA is!’

Momo meanwhile placed hand over her mouth, shaking her head slightly. “This conversation is so disgusting.”

“Yeah, but it’s kinda fun though.” Uraraka said with a broad smile.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
They arrived at the facility not long after, a large, domed structure that resembled an observatory of some sort, with a large dish and built into the side of a mountain or hillside of some sort. It stood above the rode, and if one were to make the trek up the step hill or to the top of it’s dome, you could see the whole city stretched before you, and much of the country side.

“We ought to climb up there one night, when there’s no one watching.” Venom suggested, as Izuku nodded in silent agreement.

The group was herded in by Aizawa, who brought up the rear, as they huddled in through the massive doors. The place before them was huge, a great cavernous area filled with a great plaza and fountain, overhead lights that dominated the ceiling to keep it lite at all times, a flooded area with a large boot, a rocky area with a quarry and canyon, and a fiery city area. It was an amazing how much detail and work had gone into it.

Standing before them was a hero in a bulky, body obscuring suit of some sort, most of their frame hidden under the thick white padding, and a large white helmet with a black glass dome across the top, and two white eyes, eerily similar to Venom’s own, though less jagged and savage in appearance. Aizawa walked past his class, and up to the astronaut-looking hero.

“That’s Thirteen! I’m a huge fan of hers.” Uraraka whispered excitedly.

“Yeah, she’s a specialized rescue hero.” Izuku remarked with a grin. “She’s really good.”

“What’s Major Tom doing here?” Venom asked, almost coming out of Izuku’s body to look himself, before Izuku stopped him.

‘Knock it off.’ He thought sternly.

Aizawa kept his back to the class, looking over the place as he spoke to Thirteen. “Where’s All Might?”

“He couldn’t make it, he’s tied up with a hostage crisis.” She answered. “He’ll try and show up at the end.”

“That man is the height of irresponsibility.” Aizawa grumbled, before gesturing slightly with his head. “See the kid in the gym uniform, green hair?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m worried about his Quirk, keep an eye on him.” Aizawa asked, before turning around and raising his voice. “Let’s get started.”

“Indeed. As you all know, you have some great Quirks, but can be highly dangerous at times.” Thirteen stated, holding up her left hand. “My Quirk, Blackhole, can be used to help people, but is extremely dangerous and can potentially kill people in the wrong hands.”

“Why is Major Tom giving us a lecture?” Venom grumbled in irritation.

‘It’s Thirteen.’ Izuku thought in annoyance. ‘And quit listening to David Bowie, you’re chewing through my phone’s memory.’

“Whatever.” Venom hissed.

“You’re training under Aizawa and All Might has shown you what you can work on, and I hope you’re training here at USJ will let you see other applications for your Quirk.” She finished, nodding to Aizawa.

As he was about to gesture for them to come forward and get ready, Izuku stiffened, every hair on his body standing on end, as his feet locked up. Kirishima and Iida gave him odd looks, as Venom manifested from his back.

“We need to leave.” The Alien Symbiote warned. “Right now!”

“What is your Quirk doing Midoriya?” Aizawa asked, irritated. “We don’t have time for games. Just because it doesn’t involve fighting...”

“What do you mean Venom?” Izuku asked, as a swirling mass of black and purple appeared in the fountain plaza below.

Aizawa turned, looking surprised for once, taken aback as the swirling mass strengthened and expanded outwards, like a blackened cloud, that was pulled open by a pale, boney hand pulling it open to reveal an equally pale face, covered in a gray, half-rotted hand, leaving only his red, focused eyes visible form under his strange mask. The figure stepped forward, similar rotted hands attached to his arms and neck. Other figures stepped out, some mutated into inhuman forms, others still vaguely human, but with the rough features and build expected for low level gang members and thugs.

The Hand-covered figure, despite his smaller size, seemed to be the leader of the group. Beside him stepped a massive figure stepped out beside him. It was massive, standing as tall as All Might, with pure, night black skin, a bird-like face, and serrated teeth in it’s massive maw, and large, unblinking eyes jammed into it’s head, and right above them, an exposed brain left in the open area. It wore only pants, the rest of it’s body covered in red, aching scars, and, if one looked close, one could see puss of some kind leaking from the wounds, giving the creature a strangely luminescent appearance.

It stopped at the silent command of the first man, as the portal reformed and reshaped itself into a ghostly figure that loomed over all of them.

“Are these bots? I thought this was rescue?” Kirishima asked, stepping forward, before Izuku’s arm snapped up without meaning to, tentacles snapping outwards to pull him back.

“Stay back.” Aizawa commanded, his voice far angrier then they were used to, as he placed his goggles over his eyes. “Those are real villains. This is a real attack.”  
“Thirteen, can you contact the school?” Aizawa asked. 

“No, I can’t raise anyone outside.” She reported.

“They might be jamming our signals.” Aizawa remarked, readjusting his scarf, as he got ready for the fight ahead. “Kaminari, you try.”

Kaminari placed a hand onto his ear piece, clicking it on twice, as static meet his ears. “Nothing sir.”

“We’re cut off.” Aizawa remarked. “

The ghostly man looked closely at them, his thin yellow eyes studying them coldly, before he spoke.

“I see only Eraserhead and Thirteen.” He reported in a deep, booming voice.

“Oh? Where is All Might? I brought so many friends, so eager to play with him.” The Hand-covered one asked, his voice a raspy tone barley above a whisper. “I wonder if a body count of kids will bring him out?”

“Shouldn’t there be sensors active in this facility?” Momo asked, looking around as the lights seemed to dim.

“Yes, here and at the main campus, but if they’re blocking our communication, same probably goes for sensors.” Thirteen remarked.

“I’ll try to hold them off as long as I can, make sure they get to the exit.” Aizawa ordered sternly.

“But sir, you can’t! You’re specialized for quick capture and binding. Groups will...” Izuku began, before Aizawa glanced at him from over his shoulder.

“I appreciate the concern Midoriya, but hero’s always have more then one trick up their sleeve.” Aizawa remarked, as he jumped down onto the plaza below, heading straight towards the gathered mass of thugs below.

“I know All Might and Thirteen, but whose this jackass?” One of the thugs asked, his fingers ending in gun barrels. “Ah, doesn’t matter, shooting squad, get in position and take aim!”

He raised his fingers, as two others got in position, but as his fingers activated, all that came was a dry clicking sound.

“What, where did my bullets go?” One of them asked, dumbfounded.

Aizawa didn’t even respond, sending out his cloth at the speed of light and wrapping around their waists, before tossing them upwards, and slamming them face-first into each other, then releasing them to fall in a pile ontop of their third peer.

“Stay back you idiots, that’s Eraserhead!” One of the thugs shouted, sounding slightly fearful. “He can erase your Quirk just by looking at you.”

A massive, four-armed brute, his body appearing to be made of jagged rock of black and yellow color appeared, flexing his arms with excitement.

“Bet you can’t to a heteromorphic type like me!” He taunted, barreling at Aizawa, his four arms raised for a fight.

Aizawa was within arm’s reach in a second, hardly wasting any time, and on him in the blink of an eye, slamming a punch into the man’s rocky face, before swipping out with his leg and taking the mutated human off his feet. The man was tossed aside over Aizawa’s shoulder, and landed in a pile behind him.

“You’re right, I can’t.” He muttered wryly. “Any other gutter punks want to try?”

“Ugh, the worst thing about heroes is when they live up to all the hype.” Shigaraki remarked, scratching his neck with an outstretched finger. “Even with all these numbers, we’re not making a dent.”

“Amazing, just look at him go!” One of the students remarked.

“This is no time to anaylze and cheer him on, we have to move!” iida commanded, stiffly gesturing to the exits.

Izuku barely had time to even comprehend what Iida had said, before the massive form of the shadowy, ghostly figure loomed over him and the rest of the class.

“Greetings heroes, forgive our audacity, but we of the League of Villains have come to this bastion of heroics for one simple reason,” The figure greeted, his mass shifting to encircle them. “To kill the vaunted Symbol of Peace, All Might.”

He shifted his ‘head’ around, as Venom appeared, gelling and covering up Izuku’s body, and readying his claws. Kurogiri stopped to stare at him for a moment, before he returned to analyzing the crowd.

“But he appears to not be here.” He finished, the area around them howling like a massive storm overhead. “This changes nothing in our mission.”

Izuku shuddered slightly, as Venom raised his fists into a fighting stance, stepping in front of Uraraka reflexively, before two figures jumped out from the crowd, rushing at the ghostly figure before anyone could react. Kirishima and Bakugou both charged Kurogiri, Kirishima hardening both arms up, as sparks fizzled from Bakugou’s finger tips. Kirishima jumped and slashed outwards, as Bakugou unleashed a massive explosion where the guy’s face should’ve been, dissipating his body like a cloud.

Before anyone could celebrate, the figure just as quickly reformed himself, looking as though he had taken no damage at all.  
“Very impressive, exactly as expected from the top school of heroics.” Kurogiri declared, his eyes narrowed in determination. “I’ll just have to deal with you all first.”

His body extended outwards all around, buffets of wind almost blowing them off their feet, as his voice strengthened and grew louder, like a roaring tornado right on top of them.

“Writhe in terror, and suffocate before our might!” He declared, Venom roaring, and struggling as darkened tentacles wrapped around him and plucked him away, as the shadowy mass of Kurogiri obscured everything around them.

He struggled for a moment, blind, before a tunnel of light opened before him. Venom almost blinked in surprise, before seeing the water churning below him. He prepared himself, as he hit the water, sending a funnel of it upwards, as he expertly maneuvered himself around the water. Venom looked around for a moment, before speaking.

“Deku, you ok?” He asked.

“Yeah, are we in the Flood Zone?” He responded, turning his head to and fro.

Venom nodded their head, as he pulled back his lips in a growl, and began heading to the surface. “We should try and regroup with the others. While I’m no fish, I can survive well in this...”

He stopped again, growling and turning in the water, as a Shark-like figure appeared before him, hands ending in webbed claws, and his surrealy human-like eyes hidden behind diving goggles. The Shark-man opened his cavernous mouth, revealing double rows of sharpened fangs. Venom raised his clawed hands quickly ready for battle, before a green and black blur jumped out of nowhere, smashing into the side of the Shark-Man’s head, and Tsuyu looked up at him, opening her mouth for her tongue to spring out, wrap around Venom’s muscled middle, and jumping away and out of the water.

“See ya.” The Shark gurgled out from his injured mouth.

“See ya.” Tsuyu repeated back, as she dashed out of the way. 

Tsuyu’s tongue breached the surface, as Venom receded back into Izuku’s body, making a lighter load for their partner, as she gently set him down on the large yacht before them. As Tsuyu retracted her tongue back into her mouth, Mineta was held onto Tsuyu’s side.

“You know for a frog, you got pretty big boobs Tsu.” Mineta said, brushing his head against one of the boobs in her jumpsuit. 

She clenched her teeth, before constricting her tongue around his body, as he gasped for breath, before tossing him onto the boat, Mineta yelping in pain. Tsuyu jumped onto the side of the ship, scampering upwards quickly, before jumping onto the boat.

“Thanks Tsuyu.” Izuku managed, as Venom appeared from his shoulder. “Indeed, we are on your debt, Tsuyu Asui.”

“No problem, but call me Tsu.” She remarked, as she climbed onto the boat, before hunkering down on all fours, in a very frog-like stance.  
Venom looked out at the gentle waves of water, before turning to Izuku. “What now Deku?”

“I’m not sure.” He muttered, looking around, as he got to one knee, hiding out of sight of anyone who would be swimming there. “But they apparently had our schedule and knew All Might should’ve been here.”

“But why come here?” Mineta asked, sounding like he was trying to control himself despite his terror. “All Might’ll show up and smash them all in no time.”

“Mineta,” Tsu began, looking to their dwarven classmate. “They came here with a plan of action. They wouldn’t come here just to be beaten. That smoke-like guy almost killed us as well. We should focus on not getting killed ourselves, or tortured to death.”

Izuku placed his hand on his chin, as he began to mutter to himself, before Venom growled slightly. “If they came to fight, Izuku and I will give them much to regret.”

“Don’t get arrogant, we need to figure why they came first.” Izuku cautioned, still looking down at his feet. “They had to have a reason. Why come here to kill the Symbol of Peace? They have to have a reason behind it.”

“He’s been the biggest destroyer of villains the world has ever seen.” Venom hissed, shaking his serpentine body slightly. “What other reason is there?”

Izuku noded slightly, as he stood tall, looking out at the gathering Aquatic Quirk users before them. 

“Whatever their reason, we have one job to do.” Izuku declared. “We have to fight like hell to win.”

“What are you saying?” Mineta yelped. “You’re not making sense. If they can kill All Might, what chance do we have? We should find somewhere to hide and wait for UA to come get us!”

“Mineta, are you sure, this whole hero thing, is the right fit for you?” Tsuyu asked, sounding like she was trying to fight back irritation from bleeding into her voice.

“I concur.” Venom growled, fixing Mineta with a hateful glare, before leaning in and whispering to Izuku. “We could just eat him if worse comes to worse. I doubt even his parents would miss him.”

“No.” Izuku said simply, as Mineta looked to them in anger.

“Listen, I know my Quirk...” He began, before Izuku held up a hand to stop him.

“Hold on, we need to think this out.” Izuku ordered.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
As they were busy trying to survive the onslaught of various Aquatic Quirk users coming for them in the flood zone, the rest of the class, what hadn’t been scattered across the various biomes, was back at the frontgates, completely uncertain and unsure of what to do, as Kurogiri loomed over them. Most of the students had essentially locked up, unsure of even what to think right now in the face of such a serious Villain threat, especially with some of their top fighters scattered and them not knowing where to look.

Thirteen unclicked one of her finger capsules silently, as Kurogiri billowed around them, silently studying them, his inhuman face inscrutable. Her Quirk would activate soon, but this wasn’t the full scale of her plan.

“Iida, head for the emergency exit and head back to the school,” Thirteen commanded slowly, sounding as though she grinting her teeth. “Warn anyone you can.”

“But, as Class President, I cannot abandon my peers!” Iida said, stiff as a board.

“This isn’t the time, so think of it this way.” Thirteen remarked. “A hero is oftne supposed to use their Quirk to help in anyway he can, even without combat.”

“Iida, we’ll be fine here.” Uraraka councilled. “You’re the fastest of us. If anyone can bring the teachers back, it’s you.”

“Touching and inspiring, young heroes.” Kurogiri said deadpan, before chuckling to himself. “But you are fools to speak your plans in front of me.”

“Oh, I don’t intend to let you defeat us so easily.” Thirteen declared, pointing her finger at him, as massive torrent of air issued forth, beginning to drag everything in front of her towards her, including Kurogiri himself.

“Iida, move!” Thirteen ordered, as Kurogiri struggled against the powerful pull.

He would’ve cursed himself for not taking into account her abilities, but centered himself. Shigaraki, everything considered, needed him to complete this mission, and this would be easy enough to handle. 

Thirteen was no combat-oriented hero compared to Aizawa, and dealing with her would be easier then most other Pros. As Iida turned to run for the exit, Kurogiri opened a portal within his twirling mass of a body, and opened directly in front of Thirteen, before quickly opening another portal directly behind her.

“Your abilities are laudable, but you are not a combat hero, Thirteen.” Kurogiri declared, as the blackhole within her finger rapidly tore apart her back and shredded much of the suit.

Within seconds, terrible, terrible damage had been doen to Thirteen’d body, as she closed the cap on her suit’s finger, and collapsed in front of Kurogiri, as he reshifted his mass back to normal, before turning to Iida’s fleeing form. One down, one to go. He swirled and headed straight towards the Hero-Student, cutting through the air like a shark through the water. Iida continued to struggle against the locking mechanisms on the doors.

“You’re next!” Kurogiri declared, as he focused on him. So focused in fact, was the shadowy, cloud-like figure, that he didn’t notice one of the other students jumping towards him.

The largest student, Shouji, jumped at him, creating a large variety of hands and limbs, trying to wrap around Kurogiri’s neck. He barely had time to smother Kurogiri, before the ghostly figure collapsed in on himself, and teleported a few feet away, heading towards Iida, unperturbed.

He barely had time to react, before two hands had latched onto his neck brace, and he found himself weightless for a moment.

“What is this?!” He demanded, surprised and enraged, as Uraraka dropped away, giving Iida a thumbs up.  
“Alright Iida, you’re good!” Ochako declared, as Iida finally opened the doors, and gave a thumbs up to the class.

“I will return!” He declared, running off.

Kurogiri shifted around in midair, trying to shake off the weightless feeling that had overtake his body, before opening a portal and collapsing in upon himself, disappearing in an instant. He would need to report this soon.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Back at the yacht, things were not getting better. Growing impatient, one of the thugs had tried to smash the boat apart to lure them out, and the boat was cracking and crumbling in upon itself. Even without the other thugs, it would not take a genius to realize they didn’t have long to formulate a plan of action. Venom, finally growing irritated with Mineta’s whining, and Izuku’s muttering, grumbled, as he overtook Izuku’s body, and stood over them.

“Is that the Jet Vigilante?!” One of the Thugs shouted in fright. “What is he doing here?!”

“Relax you idiots, it’s just a kid with the same Quirk!” Another shouted. “He won’t be as experienced or as vicious as him.”

“Listen closely.” Venom ordered, gesturing towards the center of the waters. “I will try and land there, and use my tendrils to wrap them up. You will jump away with Mineta.”

“I’m not sure you can survive so many Venom, ribbit.” Tsuyu remarked, placing a finger on her chin.

“Hopefully I can capture enough then.” Venom remarked, grinning.

He jumped away, and went for a dive, smashing into the water’s surface with a splash, as the villains all turned to each other in surprise, before rushing towards where Venom had landed within the waters. He waited effortlessly, hardly caring about the water or even seemingly effected the different environment.

“Are you sure you’ve got this?” Izuku shouted, terrified as the various fish-mutants rushed at them.

Venom grinned to himself, as tendrils extended from his hands. “No, but I got tired of waiting, and wanted some sea food.”

He wiped his left hand behind him, then his right in front of him, lashing out, and striking at several of the thugs, before wiping around and jumping out of the water, spinning in midair as his tendrils wrapped around themselves, and coiled around the thugs, leaving them immobilized. As he did so, Tsuyu had jumped away from the crumbling remains of the boat, Mineta in tow, as the remaining Aquatic thugs turned and saw them leaving. 

“Don’t let them get away!” Their leader shouted, as several jumped out to try and give chase.

Mineta, seeing the approaching thugs, began tearing off the balls from his head and throwing them with all his might at the thugs, and though each hit was enough to put them down or knock them out, each one did knock them out of the sky abit, and sent them careening into each other as they tried to avoid every sphere he threw, often only succeeding in knokcing into a team with one attached, and sticking them both together, as they fell back into the water.

Though he was bleeding from the scalp by time it was over, Mineta had done what Venom thought impossible, made himself useful. The symbiote jumped into the air, following after them, as the duo landed in the shallow ends of the pool. He turned to normal, retreating into Izuku’s body, before emerging from his shoulder.

“I must admit, you’re more useful then I thought.” Venom muttered to Mineta. “That was quite a useful strategy to clear them out.”

“Yeah, I had a good poop this morning they’re going no where.” Mineta said unabashedly.

Venom merely sighed to himself, shaking his serpentine body. “Don’t make me regret complimenting you, dwarf.”

The group hunkered down near the water’s edge to watch Aizawa at work. He was knocking out thug after thug that got within his reach, or the reach of his scarf, and although he was obviously getting tired out, the thugs still hadn’t been able to damage or even scratch him since the fight started. The leader watched for a moment, before running at the lone hero, hand readied.

“Final boss.”

“First it was 30 seconds, then 25, then 23 seconds,” Shigaraki muttered, as Aizawa’s scarf flew at him, he moved to the side slightly and caught it in his fist, and, as expected, nothing happened, as he kept running. “Then 20, now 17 seconds.”

Aizawa slammed the back of his fist into Shigaraki’s chest, as the villain pushed inwards, and grabbed Aizawa’s elbow in his crusted hand.

“I found your tell, it’s your hair.” Shigaraki whispered. “It goes up whenever you use your Quirk.”

As if on cue, Aizawa’s hair went down, the clothing around his elbow turned gray, then flaked off, followed by his skin, rapidly cracking and falling apart as the muscle underneath became exposed to the air, red and raw. Aizawa grunted in pain, but kicked Shigaraki away. Two more villains tried to tackle him, one stabbing him in the shoulder, only for him to throw his hips out and toss the one latched to his back into the second one, and turning back to Shigaraki.

“By the way, I am not the final boss.” Shigaraki stated, as a massive shadow appeared over Aizawa, who turned in surprise to see the barely human form of the beast Shigaraki had brought with him.

It reached out, and, with beyond human speed, and Aizawa’s slowed, tired reflexes, it didn’t take long for blood to fly into the air, along with his broken goggles.

The creature quickly overpowered him, throwing him to the ground with no effort, and getting on top of him holding his right arm in one hand.  
“This is Nomu, the Bioengineered Anti-Symbol of Peace.” Shigaraki stated, as it snapped Aizawa’s arm with a wet, bone-chillling crack. “It’s true your Quirk is dangerous, against lone thugs, but against someone like Nomu, you might as well be a Quirkless child trying to take him head on.”

‘I thought I neutralized his Quirk.’ Aizawa thought through the horrific pain screaming up his arm. ‘Which means he’s this strong without it.’

Nomu lifted up it’s other arm, and slammed it down with enough force to leave a crater under it, as the other arm snapped and bent at an unnatural angle. The creature’s grinning face glared down at him emptily, as it held them there. Within a moment, a black and purple swirling mass appeared, before expanding out into the form of the Smoke-like villain. Kurogiri gave Aizawa a sideways glance, studying him for a moment, before Shigaraki interrupted him.

“What is it?” Shigaraki asked impatiently.

“I took care of the hero Thirteen, but one of her students escaped.” He reported. “it couldn’t be helped.”

“Damn it Kurogiri.” Shigaraki hissed, as he scratched at his neck. “if you weren’t our ticket outta here, I’d reduce you to dust.”

“I’m certain you would.” Kurogiri muttered dryly. “What is our plan going forward?”

“We can’t take all the heroes on with this small force, especially with so many scattered.” Shigaraki remarked, before catching sight of the students near the pool, as a smile came to his face. “

Izuku and everyone locked up, shaking in terror as Shigaraki’s hand loomed over Tsuyu’s face. His fingers touched as she looked on in terror. Shigaraki looked down at her for a moment, before sighing and turning back to Aizawa, his head barely held up, blood running down his face as his eyes burned red, both from his damage and the activation of his Quirk. He grunted in pain, as Shigaraki sighed.

“You really are so cool.” Tomoura sighed, turning back and giving a quick hand signal to Nomu, who smashed his head into the concrete with a growl, the ground immediately splintering and shattering from the force of the impact, the ground and water shaking ever so slightly even near Tsuyu and Izuku’s position.

Shigaraki lifted his hand up again, preparing to disintegrate her again. “Alright, let’s try this again. This time, we’re making this a bloodbath.”

“No! Let her go!” Izuku shouted, Venom’s mass and tendrils wrappings around his right fist, enlarging and empowering it further, as he swung at Shigaraki.

Before he could even get close to the Villain, the Nomu had placed itself between Izuku and Shigaraki. The creature’s abdomen bending slightly inwards from the impact with a gut-twisting, wet crunch. Despite this, Nomu did not react at all. Shigaraki looked at him in surprise, standing from Tsuyu to glare at Izuku.

“You, you’ve got the same power as that Jet guy from a few months back.” Shigaraki remarked, leaning in closer, right by Nomu’s shoulder. “You’ve got a Symbiote….from Klyntar right?”

Izuku shuddered in shock at his words, turning to look up at him. “...What…?”

“Nothing, it’s nothing you need to worry about.” Shigaraki remarked, before gesturing to him. “Nomu, break him.”

The Nomu grabbed Izuku by the right arm, crushing it instantly in it’s hand. Izuku screamed in agony, as Mineta and Tsuyu jumped back in terror, before the creature released his damaged hand, and swung his open palm into Izuku’s body, swatting him like a fly, and sending him flying yards away into the waters behind them, blood rising to the top.

“Kurogiri, if we have any water teams left, send them to get his body.” Shigaraki remarked, turning away. “We might need that thing in the future.”

Izuku’s broken body floated down to the bottom of the waters, the darkened waters turned crimson by his blood. His leg was twisted like a smashed up pipe that had been crushed by a head-on car crash. His arm was crumbled like a can, bones sticking out as two of his fingers twitched. Two long white ribs and broke off and sliced through his flesh, the bone sticking out of the uniform, what was left of it at least. His left eye remained open, blood rising all around him, his blood, vision barely focused, as blackened mass spread across his body.

“I’m sorry Midoriya, I shouldn’t have let you get this injured. I am a terrible Symbiote.” Venom’s voice said in a conciliatory tone. “I failed you the first time...but let’s make up for it in the second round.”

Izuku’s eyes focused as he took a deep, shaky breath, as Venom’s form snapped and slipped over his own.

With a growl, Venom kicked up his feet, and headed to the surface.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
“What are we to do against the other students?” Kurogiri asked, hovering over Shigaraki.

“Oh, right.” He said, turning to the Nomu. “Crush those ones too...”

His voice stopped as he saw a blackened form heading for them, much larger then any of their Aquatic Teams, and rising from the same spot as where they had dumped Izuku.

“Nomu, to me.” Shigaraki ordered, as the creature quickly lumbered to stand over it’s master. The ground cracked and crumbled beneath the creature, as it looked at the waters.

“What is it, Tomoura Shigaraki?” Kurogiri asked, before seeing the blackened shape. “That’s not one of ours.”

“I know Kurogiri.” He remarked, clawing at his neck.

Venom burst from the water, liquid dripping down his form and glistening in the light as he stomped his left foot down, standing in front of his two classmates, his eyes narrowed as he growled and prepared for battle, his claws flexing as he prepared to fight. He lowered a hand to jam Izuku’s two exposed ribs back into his body with a wet crack, as his long tongue dangled from his maw.

“Nomu, do your thing.” Shigaraki said, pointing to Venom.

“You two, get Aizawa and head for the exit.” Venom ordered.

Nomu stomped his own foot, the ground vibrating like an earthquake, as he clenched his fists and roared. The two stood there for a moment, sizing each other up for a moment, before Venom roared, a disgusting sound, a mixture of a human yell of pure rage, mixed with an animalistic, inhuman roar of fury and hunger. The Nomu roared back, before the two charged each other.

The two moved with inhuman speed, Nomu’s every step shattering and pulverizing the ground. Venom bounded forward on all fours, clawing apart the ground with every small leap he made, and, as they got close, jumping forward, and landing fist first into Nomu’s face. The creature barley reacted, growling before trying to swing a hook into Venom’s head. The Symbiote merely brought up his other arm, blocking the earth shattering strike. The sound of crunching bones echoed, as his feet dug deeply into the ground, before his other hand reach out and gouged into Nomu’s side, the claw shredding through the thick muscled flesh and blackened skin and tearing out a chunk of his innards, blood spraying across Venom’s front, as the engineered beast staggered back. Venom jumped, and slammed a kick into Nomu’s face, sending him end over end.

The creature and came to a stop as, it’s blood dripped from Venom’s chest and face, Venom’s long tongue slipping from between his fangs to slowly lick up the ichor from himself, as his permanent grin widened.

“Foul, but I’m not picky for snacks.” Venom hissed, slowly stepping towards him. “It took a lot of energy to heal my host. This one will make a good feast.”

Nomu charged, jumping upwards, the ground rumbling again, as it threw both arms overhead and swung downwards at Venom. The Symbiote merely rushed in, tackling the creature, and driving him into the ground. The Nomu roared in rage, as Venom slammed a punch into it’s stomach, before driving more into it, as though to crush Nomu’s guts, and through to the other side. He pulled back his left for another strike into the Nomu, before it snatched his arm in it’s beefy palm, crushed it, and threw him away. Venom flew away into one of the large hills nearby, heading into the canyon zone.

Dust and dirt was thrown into the air from the force of the impact, as Nomu slowly stood up, Shigaraki watching with interest.

“Do you believe that killed him?” Kurogiri asked, sounding as though he already knew the answer.

“If what we were told is right,” Shigaraki remarked. “It’s gonna take more then that to knock out that guy’s HP.”

As if cue, Venom leapt from the hill, and slammed down onto the ground, the arm Nomu had grabbed filling out again and back into it’s original state, as he snapped his jaws at Nomu and Shigaraki’s direction. Without wasting anytime, the Nomu barreled at him again, hands ready to tear him to shreds as Venom roared, charging at the creature as well. The two meet, a shockwave of air sent pulsing outwards as the two struggled against each other, trying to overwhelm the other.

“Izuku, he’s too strong for us.” Venom reported, as he shoved Nomu back and gave him a strong kick to the side of his face, knocking him to the ground. “What next?”

The Nomu stood up, roaring again, as it charged. Venom’s right arm snapped up, a tentacle of night black mass shooting out, wrapping around Nomu’s head, and swinging down, sending him straight into the ground. The Nomu attempted to stand up, before Venom swung another kick upwards and sent him flying further back.

“If we can’t overpower him, try removing his limbs.” Izuku suggested, sounding like he was sick from the suggestion. “I don’t like it, but I don’t think he’s human so...”

“I see, human life is less important to you.” Venom remarked, charging at the downed Nomu.

“That’s not what I meant and you know it.” Izuku barked in anger.

“Alright, I’ll take off an arm and leg.” Venom said, licking his lips. “They’re not brains, but they’ll go good with the scrawny hand guy’s guts.”

The Nomu stood up, swinging it’s right hand outwards, and trying to wrap them around Venom’s head. The Symbiote reshifted and feinted to the left, grabbing Nomu’s wrist, before swinging at it’s shoulder with it’s claw, and, after a struggle, tearing the limb completely off. Red-brown blood splattered across the fields and Venom’s body, as the creature stumbled from his injuries. Without wasting a second, Venom dropped the limb, before grabbing the leg on the same side, and tearing it off. The Nomu fell, struggling and screaming in inhuman rage, it’s blood drenching the fields.

“Now, let’s eat, before I start going after those intestines of yours, Deku.” Venom hissed, snapping his jaws down on the Nomu’s thigh, and tearing off flesh. “It tastes...tainted, but this will do.”

Venom quickly tore into the rest of the Nomu’s body, before long, leaving nothing but picked-clean, white bones on the ground. It turned, as the Nomu’s eyes rolled around for a moment, before focusing on him.

“You think we only gave him strength, Symbiote?” Shigaraki taunted. “You’re about to see something that can regenerate like you can. We designed him to kill All Might, and you’re nowhere near his level.”

“What do you know about us?” Venom asked slowly, before noticing something. The gauge he had made in the Nomu’s side was gone.

Red muscle fibbers and tissues burst from the creature’s shoulder, spreading and wrapping around, until they formed the barest semblance of an arm, as it’s leg followed suit. Blackened fibbers spread across, like a growing pool of liquid, as the creature’s arm and leg were soon restored to their proper form, scars and all, but none the worse for ware.

“You thought we’d come here unprepared?” Shigaraki taunted with a laugh. “Shock absorption for the attacks, regeneration for anything to counter that, and super strength and speed to counter those as well. You’re beaten, Symbiote.”

“Then Nomu’s just a never ending buffet!” Venom hissed, grinning at the mutated beast, before charging again.

The Nomu ran as well, obviously still trying to get used to his new limb, before Venom stopped. The Nomu swung a fist at his head, only for the Symbiote to create a shield form it’s right hand, stopping the attacks from hitting him, before his other arm snapped out, grabbing the Nomu’s other arm, and yanking it off balance. As the creature staggered, Venom dispersed the shield and lunged forward, his jaws snapping around the Nomu’s throat and tearing out, the thick, slime-like blood bursting outwards, as the Nomu stepped backwards, holding it’s wound.

Venom then lunged forward, striking at the Nomu’s sides, just below it’s ribs, and ribbing outwards, shredded hunks of flesh torn right from it’s body as the creature swung a defensive uppercut, slamming into Venom’s chest. The Symbiote roared in pain, before another, open-handed strike, was swung, sending him to the ground. Venom struggled to get up, before the Nomu swung both fists down, smashing him into the ground. Again and again, the creature tried to crush Venom, putting him into the ground, and leaving a massive Venom-shaped crater there.

Izuku groaned, as Venom struggled to get up. “Is this what it’s like to be hit by All Might?”

Venom fell back down, groaning in pain. “I think so.”

The Nomu stood over him, ready to keep going, before Shigaraki signaled for him to step away. 

“That was a good warm up Nomu, but we need you for All Might.” Shigaraki commanded, as the mutated human stepped away. “Kurogiri, warp him away. We’ll need him in one piece for...home.”

Shigaraki approached, before Venom tore himself free and grabbed him by the throat before either of his companions could react. Shigaraki struggled in vein against the monumental strength of Venom, as the creature growled at him.

“Eyes...Lungs...Pancreases.” Venom listed off, looking at each one, in detail, licking his fangs. “So many snacks, so little time.”

Shigaraki grabbed the offending limb, as Venom looked at it in confusion. The slimy texture of his arm at first did nothing, as he prepared to tighten the grip enough to make Shigaraki pop, before the Symbiote’s arm grew drier, losing it’s luster, then turning a dry gray, and beginning to flake off. The Symbiote dropped him immediately, as he looked at his limb in confusion.

“How did he damage us?” Venom growled in surprise, before the Nomu turned and barreled at him again.

As Venom turned to face off against the Nomu again, Bakugou stood atop a hill, Kirishima, watching the fight closely. He had arrived just after Venom had finished devouring the Nomu's body parts, looking down at Izuku at work, his eyes completely focused on Venom, not certain what to think. This was almost impossible to him. Not only was the kid he bullied for most of his life now one of the best students in their class, he was fighting it out with several villains, one of them a mutated beast. He clenched his fists in anger, as he watched the fight continue.

Venom created a tendril of biomass from one hand, wrapping around the Nomu’s face, and crushing it, before creating another tendril, and wrapping around his legs. The creature struggled to pry them off, as Venom whipped him upwards, slamming him into the ground repeatedly, turning to find some new area of earth to crush with Nomu, as though he was determined at all costs to leave nothing un-smashed and pulverized by Nomu’s body.

Finally, satisfied with the attack, Venom turned on his heel, and swung outwards, sending the Nomu flying away and into the sea zone. A massive splash signaled Nomu’s landing as Venom turned his head to the skies and roared, freezing the blood of everyone that heard. He lumbered towards Shigaraki, baring his teeth in rage.

“We are not done with you yet.” Venom growled in rage. “You almost killed my host. And how do you know about my...origin?”

Shigaraki was busy, not actually listening to what Venom was saying of course. He was more busy clawing at his neck, to the point even Venom was concerned he’d tear the skin off. Of course, Venom didn’t want to lose any meat before he got in on him. Just as Venom was about to approach the young man, his tongue sticking out of his maw, and dripping with green slime, the doors were bashed open, and there stood All Might, dressed in his dress shirt and pants, but glaring down at Shigaraki.

“I happened to encounter Iida on my jog to school, and he told me of what was going down here.” All Might declared. “I must say, I’m impressed by the audacity. But this little game is over.”

Shigaraki froze where he stood, as Kurogiri warped in next to him.

“Our forces are still scattered, and the Nomu will take time to get to the surface and heal.” Kurogiri reported to him. “What should we do Tomoura Shigarki?”

“Get us out of here.” He commanded simply, eyes still locked on All Might. “Leave the thugs to distract him.”

“What of the Symbiote?” Kurogiri asked, as his form enveloped Shigaraki’s own.

“We’ll deal with him in time, just get us out of here.”

Venom wanted to pursue them, but had burned up most of his energy fighting Nomu. Just one step, and he’d have to start breaking down Izuku’s organs for food, something he was taking pains to avoid now more then ever. He simply watched as Shigaraki disappeared into the portal, glaring back at Venom.

“You’ll pay in blood for denying me the kill.” Shigaraki declared, as he and Kurogiri vanished without a trace. “All Might will fall! I will be the one to do it!”

Venom watched the portal swirl and wrap around itself, like a maelstrom, before vanishing in the blink of an eye. He looked around, as All Might rushed down the stairs, through a crowd of thugs just standing up from their beating from Aizawa, and beat them down again. He stopped infront of Tsuyu and Mineta, to gently take Aizawa’s crumbled form in his massive arms, as Venom bounded to him.

“There is a villain, bio-engineered.” Venom hissed. “We beat him down and threw him in the waters there.”

“Bioengineered?” All Might asked.

“Probably as strong as you.” Venom explained. “I only beat him through luck. If you go near there, be careful.”

“My colleagues will show up, with the police, to deal with it soon.” All Might said, as he shepherded all of the gathering students out of the USJ facility. “Is Young Midoriya well?”

Venom peeled away and vanished beneath Izuku’s body, Although there were slight bags under his eyes, he looked none the worse for wear.  
“Alright, good.” All Might said with a nod. “Do you know anything about what they wanted.”

“They specifically built Nomu to kill you.” Venom hissed, as he shifted and appeared from Izuku’s shoulder. “The one covered in hands...”

“Hands?”

“Hands.” Izuku and Venom affirmed at the same time with a nod. “He was focused especially on killing you. Freaked when we took Nomu out of the picture.”

“I see.” All Might replied, scratching his chin, as he carefully cradled his broken colleague. “Thank you for what you did. That was very brave of you. Both of you.”

Izuku nodded, silent as they exited the building, and waited out front of the police and paramedics to arrive.

All Might placed Aizawa gently on the grass, and gestured for two other students to watch him and Thirteen. 

“There are still some left in there.” He remarked. “They won’t be for long, because I am Here!”

He rushed back inside, as the students watched in awe. This gave him time to both clear out any villains left, and to think about what Venom and Izuku had told him.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Shigaraki stumbled out of the portal, followed by Kurogiri, now in a more humanoid form, and dressed in a dress shirt, slacks, and vest. Shigaraki was silent for a moment as he sat at one of the bar stools, head low and as he groaned to himself. The large computer screen to their left flickered to life, as the words “SOUND ONLY” flashed across it.

“Tomoura Shigaraki, are you well?” The calm, cool voice of his teacher sounded.

“We didn’t even get to fight All Might!” Shigaraki shouted in rage. “We only took out their two useless teachers!”

“Shigaraki, calm down. Tell me what happened from the beginning.” His master spoke, still even and controlled.

“Some stupid brat with a Symbiote defeated Nomu.” 

“What?! Nomu?!” His master’s personal doctor, Dr. Ujiko snapped. “How could this be, after all the work we put into him!”

“Describe the Symbiote.” All for One stated, still focused on his student.

“Black, like the Jet guy.” Shigaraki snarled. “He threw Nomu into a pool or something.”

“Jet...Venom.” Sensei remarked to himself. “It’s fortunate you got out of there.”

“What’s the point, we lost everything.” Shigaraki muttered to himself.  
“I can assume the thugs are gone, but they’re disposable muscle anyway.” All for One remarked, before sighing to himself. “And the loss of Nomu is a set back, but as long as you and Kurogiri are here, we can still work with this.”

“How?”

“We only failed under that cheap, cliched League of Villains name and not our true identities.” Ujiko stated. “They won’t know who hit them. Not the real ones.”

“You must simply find stronger troops.” Sensei declared. “This fodder approach won’t work against a Symbiote, even one like Venom.”

“Take all the time you need, I must remain hidden in the shadows for now.” His master advised. “Next time, the world will know the terror you represent Shigaraki, I know it.”

The Video feed shut off, as Shigaraki and Kurogiri were left alone and in silence within the abandoned bar.

All for One, meanwhile, at his secret location, sat back in the shadows, stroking his chin in silence for a moment.

“Should I unhook Riot from his tube?”Ujiko asked. “You want the two together, right master?”

“No, save it for later.” All for One replied. “We must let Tomoura Shigaraki figure things out for himself, for now, and work this out on his own.”

“If you say so master.” Ujiko remarked.

All for One sat back in the shadows, turning slightly to watch the writhing, silver-red form of Riot within the specialized tube, struggling to be free.

“Doctor, send in another bum. Riot’s getting hungry.” All For One ordered.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
It took three days after the event for class to begin to return to a feeling of normalcy. Although everyone escaped with only minor scraps and bruises, with the exception of Kaminari, who many worried had fried his brain during the fight, it was a rather uneasy atmosphere after the fact. Even though few had seen it in person, the class was amazed at hearing Izuku take on the biggest, baddest villain and lived to tell about it.

Still, the class notably lost of that energy they had before when the year had started. It would be a slow and hard process to get back to where they were before. Venom seemed far more cheerful then usual, probably on account of his finally having gotten a good, bloody fight that he had hungered for. Ever since then, while Izuku thought over everything he had seen, Venom was a bit more silent. A day after the attack, Izuku was called in by Detective Naomasa.

After their greetings, and learning the Detective was part of All Might’s inner circle, Izuku went over everything he had done and seen from them, Venom chipping in to provide details as well. The room they found themselves in was comfy, with a small plant in the corner, a snack fridge and a round table, but not much else. The early morning sun was just beginning to rise from above the hills, the two having come in early to get the interview done before class started.

“So did it talk at all during the fight?” Naomasa asked.  
“No, simple roars and growls.” Venom reported, as he hung from Izuku’s shoulder.

“And this Shigaraki, based on what some of the other students said, reacted like a child to Nomu’s loss, correct?”

“Yes, compulsively scratching himself.” Izuku said with a nod, thinking back to it. “He seemed to think killing All Might was his thing, and didn’t want anyone in the way.”

“Interesting.” Naomasa muttered to himself, stroking his chin. “We don’t have any records of him or his getaway guy, so I’ll tell you what the teachers told me. Keep your eyes open for anything.”

Naomasa stood up, grabbing his beat up old hat. “You took out his prize, and almost took him out, he’ll want you if he ever gets the opening.”

The Detective and Izuku both left the interview room within UA, before heading off their own separate ways. Naomasa was bothered by some of what had occurred. Even the Heroes at UA, with all their resources, and the investigation teams he had, couldn’t find a thing on this “Shigaraki”. There was a Shigaraki family from before the rise of Quirks, but they had no records showing any children. 

‘He probably picked the name at random, and went form there.’ He thought, placing his hat back on his head. ‘But why the cover? He was so proud of himself and his toy, why not give his real name and really hammer in how he outsmarted the heroes?’

There was also the fact that, he was still bothered by Izuku’s Quirk. He and Aizawa had both agreed something was off about how similar they were, but the whole thing just didn’t seem right. The Lethal Protector fought nothing like Izuku and Venom. Of course, the students hadn’t seen anything regarding Venom devouring Nomu’s limbs, so that left Naomasa with only half the picture.

‘Once Aizawa recovers, we’ll have to look into this kid closer.’ He thought, as he left the building.

Izuku and Venom both headed off to their class, as Izuku rubbed his eyes slightly. Even getting to bed early and all had not helped him with the fact he had to get up so early to do the interview.

“Let me help with that.” Venom’s voice responded from within him, as he felt a sudden jolt of energy spike through his body. “Just playing with the chemicals to keep you awake.”

“Why did we have to do this before school, and not after?” Izuku grumbled in irritation.

“Perhaps he’s busy, but I agree.” Venom replied. “Messing with your sleep is especially dangerous for us, given the chemicals and all.”

“What do you mean?” Izuku asked, confused.

“It’s complicated.” Venom remarked. “But if any part of your body is thrown off balance, it effects me too.”  
Izuku turned and entered the classroom, several of the students jumping slightly at his appearance, before sitting back down and returning to normal. 

“So jumpy, after I pretty pulverized that Nomu freak.” Venom growled. “You’d think they’d be grateful for our bravery.”

‘You only were able to bash him up a little.’ Izuku mentally corrected. ‘And I’d be jumpy after all that too.’

“Bah, anymore thugs show up, and I’ll eat them for snacks.” Venom grumbled.

Izuku shook his head slightly as he took his seat. A moment later, Iida came running, stopping in front of the class, his body straight and alert.

“Everyone! Class is about to start, take your seats at once!” He shouted to the room.

“Uh, we’re sitting already.” Sato remarked. “In fact you’re the only one standing.”

Iida took his seat, grumbling in frustration, his shoulders hunched as he cursed himself for not following his own rules. A moment later, Aizawa marched in, to the surprise of all, covered from head to neck in bandages, and his arms completely wrapped up.

“Mr. Aizawa, should you be here?” Mina squeaked in surprise.

“I’m well enough to walk, so I’ll manage.” Aizawa replied dryly. “Besides, more important things need to be done.”

He activated his capture scarf, wrapping it around the chair and pulling it in. Everyone let out a small “ooh” as they watched in wonder as it reset back to normal around his neck, and he took his seat, letting out a small sigh of relief.

“Anyway, the school will be having the upcoming UA festival in two weeks time.” He stated, looking around the room, despite the bandages over his eyes. “This is the chance to show what you’ve got and really start making an impression on the pros.”

“But, soon after the villain attack?” Mineta gulped. “Isn’t that dangerous.”

“Security will be more stringent then before, and more Pros will be called in to guard the place.” Aizawa replied. “The staff agrees it will be good to have a little competition to take your minds off what happened a few days ago.”

“This is where we get to battle the other classes, correct?” Venom asked Izuku within his head, squirming around in his chest.

‘Yeah, the top winners usually get the best heroes to intern with and all.’ Izuku replied. 

“Good, another series of battles!” Venom bobbed within him, almost like a child jumping for joy. “This will be fun.”

‘Haven’t you had enough fighting?’ Izuku asked, tiredly. 

“No. You can never have enough.” Venom replied, seemingly confused by his pensive attitude and passive behavior. “Tell you don’t have fun smashing up challengers?”

Izuku fell silent, as he listened to what Aizawa had to say regarding the rest of the festival.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a fun one to write. I greatly enjoyed writing the battle between Nomu and Venom, and I enjoyed setting up the future story arcs that will be seen here.


	7. The Two Week Training.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku and Venom work on shared physical activities as a couple.

Within two weeks, the Sports Festival would begin for all the young heroes. Two weeks to push themselves along, improve their abilities and try and try to gain the attention of the pro-heroes that would be watching them. Needless to say, it did what most of the staff thought it would; take the stress of the Villain attack off their minds, to replace it with the stress of the competition. Izuku and the rest of his group walked to the lunchroom, Izuku not really paying attention to what they said, as Venom spoke within his mind.

“We should be start analyzing your classmates, picking out weaknesses, and working to pick them off.” Venom suggested. “This is our chance to truly become something more then them.”

‘Keep calm dude.’ Izuku thought tiredly. ‘It’s just some sports stuff. We’re not here to annihilate anyone.’

Venom grumbled in irritation, before speaking again. “We’re supposed to come out on top, yet you desire to not go all out to reach such a place.”

‘Yeah, but I know how you go around coming out on top.’ Izuku thought tiredly, rolling his eyes. ‘We’re not brutalizing them, especially since most of the class are my friends.’

“Deku, Iida!” Uraraka declared, her face determined and focused, a far cry from her usual cheerful demeanor. “I’m gonna do my best!”

She threw her fist up, as Iida and Deku threw theirs up in support. Venom appeared from his shoulder, his eyes narrowed slightly.

“Are you okay?” Venom hissed, a slight happy note in his deep voice. “You seem more bloodthirsty. It’s quite admirable actually.”

“Yeah, you’re usually super laid back.” Mina observed.

“PM...” Mineta began, before a tongue shot out of Tsuyu’s mouth and smacked him straight in the face, silencing him for the moment.

She turned on her heel, towards Kirishima, Sato and the others. “I said I’m gonna do my best!”

The three also put their fists up, in a far less excited fashion. “Woo? Great I guess?”

Izuku watched for a second, before thinking things over. ‘Speaking of, I’ve never asked Uraraka why she wanted to be a hero.’

“You could ask, when she’s more calm.” Venom whispered. “She might bite your head off right now, all pumped and ready to go as she is.”

‘Sounds like you’d like her as a host more.’ Izuku thought with a small smile.

“Perhaps.” Venom remarked. “I’m still gonna try and set you two up.”

Izuku made a strange face, as Venom quickly retreated back into his body, disappearing out of sight. He thought of asking Venom what he meant, but decided against it. Venom’s alien mind was best left alone, and asking questions would reveal all sorts of devilish ideas and attitudes that Izuku had a feeling would shorten his life expectancy. He had probably misheard what Venom meant anyway.

As such, he waited until Iida, Uraraka, Tokoyami and he had left for lunch, and were alone from the rest. They moved down the escalator and headed towards lunch, as Izuku built up the courage to finally ask her about it.

“So Ochako, why did you decide to become a hero and all?” Izuku asked, scratching the back of his neck nervously.

“Why?” Uraraka asked, thinking for a moment.

“If you don’t wish to speak on the manner...” Tokoyami remarked.

“No it’s fine.” She muttered with a sigh. “It’s just...I came here to make money.”

“Money?” Iida stated, slightly surprised.

“I know it sounds greedy, especially compared to Iida’s whole thing with his family.” Uraraka replied, rubbing the back of her head.

“There’s nothing wrong with seeking a better life.” Iida said immediately, shaking his head at her. He had known her long enough to know she wasn’t greedy by any metric.

“It’s just that, my family works construction, and times have been heard.” She said, her voice getting a little higher as she got nervous. “And dad doesn’t want me pursuing any career butwhat I wanted from the bottom of my heart.”

“I think your father is rather wise.” Tokoyami remarked, placing his hands in his pocket. “It’s best to find something you enjoy that can provide.”

“Yeah well, don’t tell anyone about this ok?” She remarked.

“She worries too much.” Venom grumbled. “The whole class is disgustingly supportive and friendly with one another.”

‘She doesn’t want pity Venom.’ Izuku thought, rolling his eyes. ‘You need to pick up on things better.’

“My whole goal is to become a hero, so my family can live comfortably.” She declared, a fire of determination in her eyes. “I’ll accomplish it no matter what.”

Iida held his hands above his head, clapping loudly. “Bravo! Bravo!”

Izuku gave him an odd, sideways glance, still not used to his strange mannerisms quite yet, as Venom shifted beneath his skin and rumbled, causing his whole body to feel like it was vibrating slightly. Tokoyami merely gave her a supportive thumbs up.

“Jeez, whose the alien here?” Venom hissed.

“Whatever happens Uraraka, I’m sure you’ll do the best.” Izuku said with a supportive smile.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Far from UA’s prestige school, were the Ogasawara Islands. A chain of uninhabited Islands, the place was famous for it’s great tropical shores and pleasant weather. But, near the mountains, far from the sight of any prying eyes, was a large hangar and base facing the ocean waters, the clear blue water lazily brushing against the sheer rocks, as an object flew at high speeds towards the landing pad that lead into the rest of the base. It resembled a large, flaming bird of some sort, it’s body partially scaled, partially rock-like. It dipped low, skimming the water with one of it’s massive wings, as it slowed down, flapping above the base, and shrinking and fading away, until a seemingly normal human landed upon the pad.

He was a man of thin, wiry build, but all muscle. He wore a sleeveless aviator jacket and goggles. The brown leather was beat up and partially scorched, with the words “EL INCINDIO DIABLOS” in fiery orange and red letters, with a large, hawk-like head, all in black, under the words. He had hawkish features, and burning yellow eyes. His boots clicked against the metal, as another, far different man approached.

The second one was heavily built and solid muscle, built like a linebacker, with a large white jacket over his upper body, with flaming patterns along the edges, baggy pants of the same coloration, with spiked boots and knees pads, as his long coat billowed behind him. He approached, his orange-red eyes glowing slightly even in the sunlight. His face was like a solid, unfeeling rock, as he approached the newcomer.

“Rodan.” He remarked, tipping his head slightly.

“Goj.” The second man greeted, giving a small salute with his two fingers.

Rodan stood for a moment, arms cross in front of him, before he spoke again. “So you’re heading out for the new Sports Festivals at UA huh?” 

“Yep.” Gojiro remarked. 

“Any kid caught your interest,” Rodan asked, tilting his head slightly. “Or ya just lookin’ for a fight from those League of Villain goons?”

“One of them’s interested me, based on what I’m seeing.” he remarked, stroking the scruff on his chin. “I’m just gonna see what’s going on with him, catch up with All Might and the rest again, and be back here in a couple weeks or so.”

“A’right, just be careful. Stuff’s getting weird lately. Not just the League either.” Rodan remarked, looking around, before leaning in to whisper. “Are we sure the two in there are the only ones.”

“That’s what I aim to find out about.” Godzillo said stoically, his expression unchanging. “Might take the kid during internships.”

Rodan shot him a wry look, shaking his head slightly as he gave him a sideways glance. “There’s no Kaiju-grade Quirks there, why bother?”

Godzillo shrugged slightly, his face impassive. “I’ve heard good things. Besides, I don’t know if I will. Just testing the waters.”

Rodan sighed as he shrugged. “Alright, nothing I say will stop ya, so just do what you do, and get back quick.”

“Don’t worry about it.” Godzillo remarked, turning and heading off towards the launchpad, before turning to the look over his shoulder. “Be careful yourself. Stuff is getting weird lately, alright?”

He continued on, as Rodan jammed his hands into his pockets and headed for the opened base doors, not even bothering to watch as Godzillo marched right to the edge of the launchpad, started stretching his arms and legs for a moment, before diving straight off into the depths below. Even as Rodan walked into the dimly lite base, no one seemed to care for the colossal, reptilian figure rose form the waters were the man had landed, and began to swim off towards the sunset.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
As the end of the day, UA was a buzz of excitement with the sports festival fast approaching and the chance to really shine. As the day drew to a close, and the Class-1A began to prepare to leave for home, a crowd had gathered, right outside their doors. The rest of the class was dumbfounded, to say the least, why so many had gathered outside of 1A. Uraraka looked out across the crowd, her jaw nearly to the floor, as she tried to figure out a way out.

“What the heck is this!” Mineta shouted impotently. “How are we supposed to get out! What’s with all these people!”

“They’re here to scout out the competition, small fry.” Bakugou muttered gruffly. “They must’ve heard we survived a big villain attack.”

Mineta looked to Izuku in shock at his words, who only held up his hands with an uncertain expression. “That’s just him on a good day.”

Bakugou stood in front of the crowd for a moment, glaring at them all with an expression as burning and rage-filled as any of his explosions, before hs spoke. “What the hell are all you Extras doing here?”

The rest of 1A stiffened and yelled in protest, as Iida shot up, chopping the air as he motioned to him. “You can’t just call people you don’t know Extras!”

A kid, around their age, pushed in front of the other students in the crowd. He had wavy, spiked purple hair, a tired expression on his face, and bags under his eyes. He looked 1A over coldly, unimpressed with all of them, his eyes cold and hardened like ice.

“So this is 1A. I heard a lot about you, but I didn’t think you were all this arrogant.” The kid remarked.

“Who the hell is this guy?” Venom grumbled within Izuku’s mind, trying to sprout out of his body to try and launch his own tirade against them. Izuku mentally commanded him to stay put.

Bakugou was bad enough with the other classes.

“I landed in General Studies, but if we give enough of a good show, we can be moved up to hero course.” The Purple haired student remarked, hands shoved in his pockets now, as he locked eyes with Bakugou, not at all intimidated by him. “And the reverse is true too, for those that don’t do good enough.”

1A stiffened at his words, everyone looking amongst themselves to figure out who would get demoted or sent off to other classes. Mineta shook slightly in terror. He had scored the lowest in physical tests at Aizawa’s surprise tests, and he still wasn’t as strong as the rest of the class. Izuku himself was also worried. Venom would be garnering all sorts of attention, and his independence could bite him in the ass if he wasn’t careful.

“Don’t worry, I won’t eat anyone’s head.” Venom remarked, still hidden away inside his body. The fact he had to promise that still didn’t put Izuku at ease.

The Purple Kid turned on his heel and headed off into the crowd, as another student, with shiny, silver hair shot up from the crowd, sharpened, knife-like fangs, and strange growths around his eyes resembling metallic growths.

“Hey! I’m from Class 1B!” He shouted above the booing crowds. “If you assholes all act like this dickhead, you better watch yourselves and not make us all look bad!”

“What the hell man, what are you thinking?” Kirishima yelled at Bakugou. “You’re gonna have every class gunning for us in the Festival.”

“What do I care” Bakugou grumbled, as he began to shove and push through the crowd. “I’m aiming for the top. Why play nice?”

Venom’s head sprouted and shifted from Izuku’s body, as he looked to his host. Denki looked at Venom for a moment, temporarily turning green, before taking a deep breath and calming himself down.

“He’s right you know.” He hissed to his host. “Why play nice, we all know we have to crush the competition.”

“Yeah, but don’t say that outloud.” Izuku said, motioning for his Symbiote to be quiet, as the rest of the class looked at him in irritation. “it’s a Sports Competition. We have to play by certain rules and all.”

“Fine, whatever.” Venom said, head lulling slightly. “Just don’t be so spineless about it like you are now.”

“I’m not spineless.” Izuku muttered in annoyance, as his Symbiote grinned at him.

“Yeah, of the two of us, I think I have more spine then you.” Venom whispered to him. “And I’m rather lacking in any internal workings.”

“Keep it down.” Izuku warned.

Venom nodded slightly, and withdrew quickly back into his body, before continuing. “If you want to keep your position in this class, we’ll need to practice and hone our skills.”

Izuku nodded, as the rest of the class tried to make their way out.

It was not until the walk home, did Izuku and Venom began to talk a little more, now walking the brick path and past the large, olden trees along the way to class.

“So I know you’re kinda touchy about being found out.” Izuku said aloud, making sure no one was around to hear them. “Why though?”

“Passing as a Quirk will be hard, but I don’t want any government types to find out about me.” Venom replied. “Who knows what they’ll try and do to me.”

“You think they’d try and separate us?” Izuku asked.

“Most likely.” Venom replied. “I’m starting to like it here. I’d rather be free to run around and fight foes then be sliced up and killed in a lab.”

“Understandable.” Izuku said with a shrug. “But didn’t you have a whole team.”

“If they haven’t appeared on the news or tried to seek me out,” Venom remarked coldly. “Then they’re probably dead by now.”

“Aren’t they your friends, right?” Izuku asked, surprised at how cold and slightly angry he sounded.

“We’re a Team, very different.” Venom replied defensively, before sighing. “I was considered disposable by them. I’d rather stay here and be something worth remembering.”

Izuku wanted to ask why his team had been sent in the first place, but figured Venom didn’t feel comfortable quite yet. It had taken him this long already to talk about getting sent here and his team. He probably needed more time to work towards anything else about his homeworld and the other Symbiotes. They walked along a little further, before Venom manifested from his back, and Izuku asked him another question.

“Do you think we can win this?”

“Deku, you have a supreme talent for being intelligent but very stupid.” Venom remarked. “We defeated that massive machine, held our own against Bakugou, and fought that Brain guy despite him being All Might’s counter. We got this.”

“I just don’t...” He began, before Venom made a growling noise.

“Don’t overthink it you idiot.” Venom grumbled. “Like I said, we’ve done a lot. Some school kids with attitude won’t do much to counter us.”

Izuku wasn’t sure about that, but thought of Kacchan and his abilities, his drive, and Venom’s desire to constantly come out on top, to adapt and overcome whatever stood in his way. He admired both, even if Katuski was a rage-filled bully, and Venom was far too eager to make a meal of any that annoyed him. Venom studied him for a moment, leaving Izuku to wonder if he was reading his mind. Venom had always said he was inside Deku’s head. Was he reading his thoughts now?

“All we need is some training.” Venom suggested, his ever-present smile widening. “I have quite the idea. At Dagobah Beach.”

Izuku raised an eyebrow. What could be at the beach? It was dumping ground for garbage. Their training had been weight focused and using machines, not cleaning up after lazy people.

“Trust me, this will work.” Venom said, tongue licking his lips slightly. “it worked on my last hosts.”

Izuku briefly wanted to ask him about the other hosts, but what would that be like? Would it be like asking a partner about their past relationships. Given how close him and Venom were, would it be too personal? He had been in those peoples’ heads, and if they had died or left him behind, would that give Venom trouble or emotional issues?

“Just follow my directions, and you’ll be ready.” Venom stated, nodding his miniature head.

Izuku looked at him uncertainty, but simply shrugged. “Not like I got a choice. This better work.”

Venom didn’t say anything, merely retreating back into his body with a chuckle, a chuckle that Izuku did not like in the slightest. Whatever the symbiote had planned, he had a feeling it was going to be bad. He just hoped it didn’t end with them going on another rampage and on the run from the law.

What Deku had not realized was that Venom’s plan was not exactly what he had expected. What Izuku thought going forward was that they would be doing some more intense weight training, working out, or pushing his body somehow. Venom had, after all, insisted Izuku work his own body to be a better host, but what was happening now was just too strange.

Venom was literally having him clean a beach. Dagobah Beach had become infamous as a dumping ground, and while Izuku had his problems with it, he never thought his own Symbiote would recruit him into acting as clean up crew for this place.

“You keep doing this for the next two weeks, and you’ll be ready in no time.” Venom said within his mind.

“Why am I chucking refrigerators across a beach?” Izuku grunted, struggling with the large hunk of metal. “This doesn’t seem like it’s doing much.”

“Course it is!” Venom replied. “One of my first hosts trained like this all the time. Became one of my strongest hosts.”

“If you say so.” Izuku muttered. He felt tempted at first to ask about Venom’s past hosts, but then went against it.

Hosts were really important, apparently. He and Venom already had a tight bond from years of co-existing and working things out together. If Venom had to leave them, either due to death or simply being forced out of his host, then he figured asking would open up old wounds. Venom was always rather private about his past, for whatever reason, and, as always, Izuku had learned to simply let him talk when he wanted to.

“So we’re doing this for two weeks?” Izuku muttered in agitation, wanting to change the subject, for Venom’s sake.

“Yes, with the new free time your teachers have given you, this will work perfectly.” Venom hissed, shifting beneath Izuku’s chest with nervous energy. “Then you’ll be ready.”

“Can’t you just bash through the competition?” Izuku asked, as he finally managed to move the refrigeration unit and get it moving up the beach.

“No.” Venom stated firmly. “The less I appear, the better. Too many heroes and cops around. I’ll just use pieces of myself over your arms and legs to enhance your performance.”

Izuku nodded. That seemed like the best approach. Not only would it lessen the chances of the Heroes and Police seeing Venom in full form, but it would also lessen the energy output Venom had to use. The less he exerted himself, the less they would need to eat, and would allow Venom to not have to potentially start turning on Izuku’s organs.

“If worse does come to worse, I can eat your spleen.” Venom suggested. “You don’t need it anymore, and I can just regrow it.”

“No, you’re not eating my organs.”

“I’m just saying, the sports festival might get rather...stressful.” Venom stated.

Izuku rolled his eyes, groaning to himself. There were times when partnering with Venom seemed like a mistake. This seemed like one of them. The Sports Festival was a big deal, where the students could get scouted and make their way into Top Hero Agencies if they performed well. If Venom was going to be rotting away his organs in the middle of a fight, he doubted it would go over well with the heroes who were looking for the best candidates.

That brought up the next question and path going forward, which heroes would want them, which ones could they trust and go with, and what would they be looking for? He thought of going to All Might. Since the two knew each other’s secrets about their Quirks and abilities, Izuku figured there was no harm in going to him.

“Go to whoever you want.” Venom stated. “Just be careful how you phrase things.”

“Even Aizawa?” Izuku asked, raising an eyebrow. “You two would get along, right?”

“Might actually allow us to cover up better.” Venom said thoughtfully.

Izuku simply shrugged, continuing his day’s work of hulling up all this trash for Venom’s mysterious training regime.

As the week went by, Izuku continued without much pause, focused on his studies, exercise regime, and sometimes hanging out with the other students. Everyone else was so focused on the tournaments to come, that they all were focused on their own ways of preparing for the festival. Izuku still wasn’t sure if he was ready, and while Venom’s ad hoc training methods had gotten the beach cleared, he still wasn’t sure what it had accomplished.

But, only three days before the end of the week, that would take them to the tournament, and everything had been cleared. Izuku stood proudly, looking over his work, as Venom bubbled within his chest.

“I told you this would work.” Venom grumbled.

“What exactly does it accomplish?” Izuku asked.

“Physical strength enhancement, without me.” Venom stated. “I want a host that can at least do something on their own in a fight after all.”

“O..Okay.” Izuku replied, shaking his head. He still got the feeling Venom was lying to him, and waited for the Symbiote to finish.

“Plus, I wanted to see the beach for real.” Venom explained. “No garbage, as the sun goes down. Your world isn’t so ugly after all, now that I see this.”

“I knew it.” Izuku grumbled. “We should’ve actually been doing training.”

“Hey, that garbage was heavy, wasn’t it?” Venom hissed in agitation.

“Yeah.”

“And as the days went by, you got better at handling and lifting it, correct?” Venom inquired in annoyance.

“Yeah...” Izuku said nodding to himself.

“So I helped.” Venom replied grumpily. “I deserve a thank you. And extra Tattor Tots tonight.”

Izuku sighed, as he saw the sun go down across the waters, casting the lazy blue waves in a warm orange and yellow glow. He could see why Venom would want to see this now. Venom moved around slightly under his skin, before manifesting out of his shoulder.

“Can I take over your form?” He asked. “I want to see this, through my eyes.”

Izuku nodded, as the black slime broke through his skin and seeped around, overtaking his body and expanding outwards as Venom took on their humanoid form. He carefully balanced his weight on the platform above the beach, careful as not to break it down all his muscle, and looked it over in silence for a lot longer then Izuku was used to from his Symbiote. He said and thought nothing, simply wanting to let Venom have a few moments of quiet. 

Izuku was loathed to interrupt, but cleared his throat. “Hey uh, can we get a move on, before we get caught. People are gonna see you and, y’know...”

“Just hold on a little more.” Venom said, a rare wistful note within his deep, booming voice. “We’ll leave in due time.”

Izuku wasn’t so sure about hanging around, but waited for Venom to finish whatever he was doing, before the Symbiote finally withdrew back into his body, and they made their way back home to prepare diner for themselves and Izuku’s mother.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
With the final days passing by in the blink of an eye, many of the students could hardly believe that the time had finally come, and things were about to go down. Everyone of 1A was a bundle of nervous energy and excitement coming forward. The chance to get the attention of the best heroes, settle vendettas with the other classes, or just keeping their positions from being knocked off by the other students and classes all gave them the hype and energy for the coming struggle going forward.

The class were all stationed wtihin one of the waiting rooms, isolated from the other classes to avoid any trouble or cheating, As they spoke and gossiped among themselves, all in their Gym uniforms, Tenya came in, practically ripping the door off it’s hinges in his excitement.

“Is everyone ready?” He called into the room. “They’re about to call us up soon!”

Izuku and Venom stood in one corner, talking with each other, as the others listened closely, trying to pick up some of Venom’s combat wisdom that he was sharing with Izuku. Shoto watched them carefully, before approaching.

“Hey, Midoriya.” He stated in his cold, low voice.

“Uh yeah?” Izuku replied, turning quickly, as Venom disappeared back into his body once more.

“I don’t know how you pulled it off, but I saw you and your Quirk take on that brain guy at USJ.” He remarked, looking at Izuku, focused and cold like a hawk. “And All Might seems to be keeping in touch, despite me and a few others having higher scores.”

Izuku starred at him in slight confusion, before Shoto pointed at him, drawing himself up to look down at Izuku. “What I’m saying is simple. I’m going to defeat you in this festival. No matter what. You and the rest of the top students here.”

“What the hell is your problem?” Venom demanded, sprouting from Izuku’s shoulder.

“Yeah, Todoroki, we’re not here to fight each other.” Kirishima cautioned, putting a hand on his shoulder. “Let’s just calm down here.”

“I have to get to the top.” Todoroki remarked simply, pulling away from Kirishima’s hand. “It’s nothing personal, you wouldn’t understand.”

Izuku narrowed his eyes in annoyance, setting his teeth. “I don’t know why you’re doing this, or why you’d want to, but if you’re going to be aiming for the top, so will I.”

Izuku looked him in the eye, as Venom swayed around his shoulders. “It’s true you’re one of the strongest, and one of the best. But I’m going to not stop until I reach the stop either.”

The two stood there tensely for a moment, as others watched in excitement for the Declaration of War going down right now. Katsuki Bakugou sat by Tokoyami and Sato, glaring at them both. He had been quiet since they had arrived, silently brooding and planning against Izuku and Todoroki since they arrived. He knew they were both the center of attention. Todoroki was the powerhouse who had dwarfed him and Izuku with his massive powers of ice, while Deku, pathetic, shitty Deku, had fought off a powerhouse villain on his own with his own monstrous Quirk.

He had waited for this moment, and didn’t waste any of his energy on yelling or screaming at anyone on the bus ride over, Kirishima annoying him by asking him if he was feeling sick or under the weather today. No, he was just fine. He was going to show them both up, and show the entire class who was going to be the next Number One. Personally, he was wondering if Deku was the one feeling sick. He was acting unusually aggressive. But that didn’t matter either. If the little nerd and his slime-covered gimp suit wanted to get any ideas above their level, he’d be happy to smack them down again.

As the entire class made their way out, marching to the fields for everyone within the great arena, everyone’s heads held high. The crowd cheered as the various classes marched outwards, and headed towards the stage. Venom buzzed below Izuku’s skin for a moment, the great sound from the arena scaring him for a moment, before the Symbiote calmed down and adjusted. This was Izuku’s first step towards greatness, and Venom would happily be there to help him smash down any of his obstacles.

Above, in special viewers’ boxes for the heroes, and along the stands, watched various heroes away from the rest of the crowd. All Might, within his thin, emaciated form, watched Izuku with interest, perhaps wondering if he might make a good successor or not. Elsewhere, among the rest of the heroes, was a man dressed in a black hero suit, fire burning along his head, shoulders and chin, a far deeper hatred and determination burning in his eyes as he watched the students approach. What was his flesh and blood would make his great impression here.

And away from all of that, was another powerfully built man, in a white long coat, his orange and red eyes watching the approaching kids with interest, his eyes distant and cold, almost reptilian in nature. There was someone he was searching for among these students, someone with great potential.

And elsewhere, in the shadows and darkened corners of Japan, where few were brave enough to tread, a powerful and ancient figure stroked his chin slightly as he watched his future foes and victims alike gather to test each other.

Izuku and Venom had stepped onto the field expecting just to rise above the others and hopefully become something the other heroes would have their eye on in the future, but what they were about to find out, was there far more riding on this then even their lofty expectations.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Took me a while to get this done. I lost my last flash drive and much of the story, and I've been busy. I really liked how this one shaped up, especially the inclusion of Godzillo finally, within the story.


	8. Sports Festival Part 1:The Race

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Festival begins with a strong three way rivalry.

“I can’t believe we’re stuck here while the rest of the heroes get to slack off for a bit.” Mt Lady muttered, as the crowds made their way into the arena.

“Yes, I personally would like to be scouting for good students for my agency right now.” Kamui Woods remarked, looking around the crowds for any suspicious activity. “But duty calls.”

“Yeah, the league can show up anywhere.” Death Arms began, before spotting someone who was unmistakably a hero.

Their style of dress was definitely heroic, with the white Long Coat he wore with flame designs along it, and spiked boots that clicked ever so slightly against the pavement. He stood a head taller then everyone else, possibly as tall as the legendary All Might. Mt Lady gave a confused glance, as the guy passed by, his stony visage give way to a small grin, as he gave them the peace sign.

“That’s a hero right?” She asked. “I saw he had a Hero Pass, but couldn’t catch a name.”

“I might know him.” Death Arms remarked, scratching the back of his neck, thinking it over. “But I didn’t think he would come out looking for students, he’s much more private.”

The man entered the building, and headed along an access tunnel to the stadium available only to the heroes, a security terminal instantly scanning his pass and letting the doors open, as he stepped away from the milling crowds coming in. He walked along, passing by the various students’ waiting rooms, and ignoring them. Even if he wanted to, any hero going in was prohibited, given they could start cheating or playing favorites and the like. He was more interested in finding one of the nearby teachers from the school to talk things over with.

As he rounded a corner, he caught sight of someone in a suit, with blond and pointed tufts of hair, like a rabbit’s ears. He blinked for a moment, as the figure turned, his trademark smile and massive physique visible. Godzillo nodded to himself. Just for a moment, he thought he had seen someone completely different, but his eyes must’ve been playing tricks on him.

“Ah, welcome from Monster Island, Godzillo.” All Might laughed, holding out his hand. “I must say, it’s rare to see you in human form, and even rarer for you to attend these events.”

Godzillo took it with smile, as he shook his hand. “Happy to see ya, Might. I just came to scout for new students.”

“Oh, interesting.” All Might asked, throwing a large arm over the Fellow Hero’s shoulders, as they walked along. “So, I must say, I loved your last movie, but how is the rest of America treating you.”

“Just as noisy as you said it would be.” Godzillo said, bowing his head a bit. “I love it, but it’s great to be back home, at least for a bit.”

They walked along a little further, as Godzillo pointed a finger at the Number 1. “By the way, how goes the teaching?”

“Why, is your little one getting ready to take your throne yet?” All Might asked with slight excitement. He and Might had known each other for a few years, kept in touch a bit. All Might was one of the first to send gifts when his first child, and daughter, was born.

“Naw, she won’t be ready for another year.” Godzillo said with a shrug. “I’ll be training him for ya until then though.”

“Well, they’re all impressive, the ones I have.” All Might replied with a thumbs up. “I see a little spark of myself in all of them. And I’m sure your daughter will be just as great.”

“That’s good.” Godzillo remarked, as they separated, and he scratched the back of his ear. He had the odd sense All Might was keeping something from him, but didn’t push it. “I was wondering about that Izuku. He’s the one with the Quirk like the Jet guy right?”

All Might made a motion like he was running a zipper across his mouth. “Sorry old pal, can’t reveal anything about him yet. Not until after the competition.”

“I thought so, but word gets around fast regardless.” Godzillo remarked. “Word is he pretty much took a massive villain out of commission on his own.”

All Might stiffened slightly, before giving a relaxed shrug. “He just might’ve, but he also might’ve not.. But again, you’ll have to wait and see him for yourself.”

Godzillo studied him for a moment, his fiery eyes focused and ready like a Falcon’s, but he merely nodded. “I get it, you take of yourself All Might.”

“You too Monster King.” All Might said, giving him a thumbs up.

Godzillo nodded as he turned and left for the stands, and to get a good vantage point for the coming competition and fights. It was true All Might hadn’t told him much, but even that he could still glean something from. Godzillo was no detective, but he was not sheer brute force like what many thought. The reaction All Might had, about Izuku fighting a villain, was worry, not denial or anything close. If it got out he was fighting other villains, potentially a physical powerhouse with abilities like an infamous cannibal, he would be ruined, and UA’s spotless reputation would be dissolved.

‘The fact he didn’t deny Izuku’s similarities to Jet is telling.’ Godzillo thought, nodding to himself. ‘He’s the one I want. This Midoriya is going to be one of the best, I can feel it in my spines.’

He continued on, making his way up the stairs and into the stands, where very few others, hero or civilian, were seated. He calmly took a seat in the front rows, and sat down, the seat groaning slightly under his muscle and bulk.

All he had to do now was wait for the matches to begin.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The classes had gathered in the center of it all, surrounding a large stage, where stood the Heroine Midnight. Even without the stage it would be impossible to miss her. She was dressed in a blackcorset and knee-high boots, like a dominatrix, with a white skinsuit underneath it, over her lithe, athletic frame. Many in the audience were salivating at the sight of her. Many more parents were uncomfortably covering their younger childrens’ eyes.

“That costume should come with a warning.” Muttered Denki nervously.

“Yeah, aren’t kids watching this.” Kirishima replied.

“I don’t see anything wrong with it.” Venom pipped up in Izuku’s head.

‘You’re a cannibalistic alien.’ Izuku thought with a role of his eyes.

“I rarely eat my own kind. Just a few challengers and some of my children to keep my position.’ Venom muttered in annoyance.

Izuku almost gasped outloud, before controling himself. ‘You did what to your kids?’

“Klyntari tradition. I’ll tell you later.” Venom remarked.

Izuku was not very relaxed by such a statement, but sighed to himself, and focused ahead.

“Alright, quiet down, all of ya!” Midnight commanded, annoyed at both the students’ lack of focus, and the comments on her prized outfit. “The student representative will now be speaking.”

“From Class-1A, it’s Katsuki Bakugou!” Present Mic’s voice announced from the Announcer’s box. Venom hissed briefly in rage from sound, before calming down.

Izuku flinched from the pain, then from Bakugou’s icy glare directed at him as he marched past, hands jammed in his pockets. He marched past, as Izuku watched, slack-jawed in terror. Him giving a speech? This would never end well.

“Kaachan’s giving the speech?” He sputtered in amazement.

“Must be because he placed first in the entrance exam.” Sero replied,, shaking his head nervously.

“The hero entrance course you mean.” One of the other students from the work studies course muttered in annoyance at them.

The rest of Class-1A waited in nervous silence, many looking around, waiting for the moment Katsuki would say something to utterly enrage them all. Some clung to the vain hope that he would say something encouraging, perhaps to challenge the others, but not to risk pissing everyone off and putting a target on his back.

Those who hoped for that, were soon dashed against the harsh rocks of reality. Katsuki looked around, glaring at those below him, before turning to the microphone.

“The Athlete's oath,” He began, straightening from his usual slouch. “I’m gonna be the one to come out on top.”

Immediately, roars of anger erupted from the student body. Iida was the first to yell.

“How dare you besmirch the purity of this event?!”

Others booed and hissed, many angrily declaring their intent to knock him down a peg and come out on top themselves. Venom manifested from Izuku’s shoulder, his permanent smile broadening with glee.

“You all will make good stepping stones to the top at least!” Bakugou shouted.

“His ego makes such a large target.” Venom hissed. “It will be all the more fun when we win.”

‘Ego? I don’t think so.’ Izuku thought to himself. ‘If he was the old Kaachan, he would’ve done it with a smile on his face, eager to put them in their place. He’s pushing himself, telling himself he can’t lose.’

“Whatever you say, can we get started already.” Venom grumbled, as he retreated back into his body.

Bakugou made his way down the stairs, fixing another glare in Izuku’s direction, as he kept marching along, completely uncaring to the still very enraged glares and mild jeers thrown his way by the rest of the students.

“And now, for our fist event, the race!” Midnight declared, indicating a large sign that lite up, the words “Obstacle Course Race” Emblazoned upon it.

The area above the sign folded up and clanked away, opening to reveal a large doorway leading out into the area just outside the racing course, all around the Stadium. 

“IN this race, every member of the class will compete against each other in this four-kilometer foot race around the outside of the stadium!” Present Mic yelled for all to hear, as the classes made their way towards the entrance. “UA believes in max freedom, so as long as you stay inside the course, you’re free to do as you wish!”

“A race? How pathetically easy.” Venom hissed within his head.

“It’s not that easy.” Izuku muttered. “We can’t let you go all out at the start, remember.”

They made their way to the gates, three large traffic lights above the gate, the red one currently, glowing, before it went to yellow. Izuku stretched and prepared himself. He wished he and Venom had done more conditioning for races and endurance tests. They weren’t slouches by any means, but the focus on strength was probably a mistake, at least to Izuku.

The Light flashed green, as the students ran like the wind for the first gate. Izuku bolted forward, before noticing the gate leading outside was far narrower now. He cringed as he was squished between the various other students, eager to get out first.

“Ah, this is too thin,” Venom hissed, more bemused to angry. “Almost like the first filter. Let me handle this.”

Long black tentacles of Biomass erupted from Izuku’s arms and shoulders, four of them tearing free of his body, and striking against the other competitors, before pushing them away, and sending them into the walls, and thinning out most of the crowd for Izuku to keep running.

“Careful Midoriya, you almost crushed me!” Iida shouted, as he jumped away from Venom’s tendrils.

“Sorry! Venom’s idea!” He meekly stated, as he began to bolt for the gate.

Todoroki was already ahead, and slammed his foot down, creating ice around the gate, and trapping many other classmates’ feet in a layer of ice. Yaoyoruzu created a poll immediately, to spring over the Ice, as Venom reacted in a split second, coating Izuku’s feet in biomass, and jumping up ahead, past a floating and surprised Uraraka. The two gave each other a small smile and thumbs up, before continuing on.

“Wow, Todoroki of Class-1A pulls out in first now with most of the competition in ice.” Present Mic announced. “Cold moves!”

“It’s gonna take more then that to stop me you Icy-Hot bastard!” Bakugou yelled as the rest of the class came after him.

“Oh, we’ll enjoy mashing both these fools into paste.” Venom hissed, as Izuku landed slightly ahead of Bakugou, the ground splintering and crushed into fragments from Venom’s impact.

Izuku ran ahead, Venom enhancing his speed, as Todoroki continued onwards. He merely gazed back at him and the rest with his usual cold glare.

“More made it out then I thought.” Todoroki muttered to himself, as Mineta leapt into the air, far higher then any expected.

“Interesting move, staying behind, and letting Izuku distract everyone!” Mineta declared confidently, as he reached for one of his Grapes. “Now get a taste of…!”

He didn’t have time to talk, before a massive robotic hand swung out of nowhere and clobbered him, sending flyign end-over-end and out of sight. Izuku looked on in shock.

‘Well, one less obstacle.’ He thought for a moment, before snapping out of it. “Mineta!”

“Don’t worry about him, we’re...” Venom began, before a machine rose in front of them. The same ones from the Entrance Exam.

“Every Obstacle Course needs obstacles, after all!” Present Mic declared, with a slight hint of sadistic joy in his voice.

“Fuck.” Venom aptly stated, before taking control of Izuku’s right arm, and raising it to lash out with several tentacles to crush the machine with his tendrils of mass.

It mattered little, for the ground shook, as several more, far larger Zero-Pointers came into view, blocking the way.

“Welcome to Robo Inferno everyone!” Present Mic shouted, as the classes stopped and stared in horror.

“Those...those are too many!” Someone shouted.

“Where does the school get the money for all these machines?” Momo wondered aloud.

Todoroki came to a stop, keeping low to the ground, as he glanced up at the massive machines. He was almost impressed. If these were indeed the things the guys who took the entrance exam had to face, he could see why so many were intimidated by them.

“I wish there was something a bit more challenging.” Todoroki muttered, as ice exploded form his left and surged into the machines ahead. “Just for my dear old man.”

Several of the machines were flash frozen in an instant, the ice clinging to their frames, locking up joints and servos, before a metallic groan erupted form the machines, as they were locked in place, many of them shutting down, as he ran past them.

“I wouldn’t follow!” He warned, as he ran ahead, and past the frozen machines. “I made it so they wouldn’t be stable.”

As if one que, most of them came crashing to the ground, shaking and shattering the earth below, and sending clouds of dirt and ground-up dirt into the air around them, particles of ice sprinkled amongst them.

“Impressive.” Venom hissed, as Izuku felt his legs bolting towards the machines. Two smaller ones marched in front of him to try and stop him, only for two tentacles to lash out and strangle them, before Izuku felt himself jump into the air, and swing his arms towards each other, smashing them to pieces.

“But we’re not out of this yet though.” Izuku declared to himself, as he landed ontop of one of the machines, and chased after Todoroki.

As he ran across the downed corpse of the gutted machine, banging resounded from within it. He looked down for a fraction of a second, before continuing on his way. As he jumped off, Kirishima smashed his way through the metal, yelling in surprise.

“I’m alive!” He shouted in relief, before glaring out across at Todoroki’s disappearing form. “Stupid bastard, I’d be dead if I weren’t me.”

A moment later, another student burst through the body of the machine, yelling in rage. It was the kid from Class-1B, who had not just one, but quite a few bones to pick with Bakugou.

“Are all 1A guys such assholes?!” He yelled. “I’d be dead if I weren’t me!”

Kirishima got up and dusted himself off, before continuing on, as more of the massive machines crowded around to try and crush and destroy them. Bakugou roared in animalistic rage, before triggering a bunch of explosions form his palms, riding his way to the top of one of the Zero-Pointers, and running across it’s head to the other side. Izuku watched as Tokoyami and Sero followed after him with their own Quirks. 

“Hold on, allow me.” Venom hissed, as the Symbiote coalesced and formed all around him, forming into the massive reptilian form once more.

Izuku wasn’t sure about this, but Venom charged forward, another Zero Pointer trying to crush him down, before he fired two strands of biomass from his wrists, onto the machine’s waist, and flung himself forward, his tentacles going back into his body as he slammed feet first into the machine’s chest. It stumbled slightly from the landing, as he barreled upwards, claws smashing and crushing the armored hide, as he reached the top, jumped off, and flew to the other side, just behind Bakugou and the others.

Venom was about to reced back into his body, when a smaller Robot slammed into him from behind. The Symbiote barked in annoyance, and turned, grabbing it by the left arm, before opening it’s maw and crushing it’s skull between his mighty jaws. He gave a single crunch, before spitting it out in disgust, the machine’s single eye flickering, before shutting off.

Venom roared, before going back into Izuku’s body, before trying to throw away the machine’s arm.

“Wait, keep it!” Izuku said outloud, even without Venom insight, his eyes all black and focused on the rest of the obstacle course. “I think we can use this. I gotta feeling about this.”

Venom transformed his right arm, to carry the object better, as they continued on. “I’ll trust your judgment Izuku.”

Though Venom hadn’t intended to stay in his form for that long, he had never the less attracted much attention. The crowds watching fell into a hushed silence, some disgusted, some horrified, many whispering and muttering amongst themselves if this kid was indeed the fearsome vigilante known as Jet.

Godzilla looked up at the cameras, as they replayed the vicious beat-down of the machine, his fang-like teeth bared in a smile, as his orange-red eyes twinkled.

“My, my. I know who I’m going for in this class.” Godzllo stated to himself, as others looked at him in surprise in shock. He ignored them, his grin widening, as he muttered to himself. “You couldn’t hide it well All Might.”

Izuku continued on, Venom enhancing his legs to keep him moving as the others struggled against the many, many robots. Izuku almost jumped out of his own skin as a loud explosion tore through the area, and one of the machines fell to pieces, it’s head and parts of it’s shoulders blown and vaporized by a canon round from Momo.

He and several other continued onwards, before the others came to a stop, many slack jawed and mouths agap. There ahead of them, were various pillars rising from a deep pit, all of these random rock formations connected by thin ropes and secured by metal plating. 

“If you thought the first one was too easy, here’s your next obstacle!” Present Mic declared. “The Fall! The rules are quite simple. Get across, and if you fall, you’re out!”

“It’s just a big tight rope.” Tsuyu remarked, stepping forward, and grabbing the nearest one, and making her way across it on all fours. “This is an easy swim for me.”

Mina and Uraraka watched as she scampered across the rope with ease, not even stopping to take a break, as someone else stepped up beside them.  
“Now it’s my chance to turn heads!” Declared another girl, with messy pink hair, dressed in goggles and various heavy gear across her feet and waist. “Feast your eyes on this, Support Companies, the Wire Launcher and Hoover Shoes!”

“Hey, can you have all that?” Mina demanded, amazed at all the stuff she was carrying.

“She’s in the support course.” Uraraka explained quickly.

“You guys get practical combat training, right?” She asked, goggles clicking and focusing on them. “So we in the Support Course can use items and costumes we’ve developed in the interest of fairness.”

She turned back to the canyon, giggling to herself. “This is the best chance to show off our inventiveness and craftsmenship to the companies out there!”

She clicked a button, as a harpoon shot form her wait and flew through the air, striking into the side of one of the rock formations. She clicked another, as it pulled her along and towards the harpoon. The other two watched in shock, before moving to get across themselves. Izuku and Venom slide to a stop, before he held out his remaining hand, and shot a mass of tentacles out and into one of the rock formations. With a mere flick of the wrist and jump from his enhanced feet, Izuku easily cleared the gap, heading towards the next.

“We’re losing distance to Kaach...Katsuki and Todoroki.” Venom reported grumpily. “We need to lose this.”

“It will shield us and make a good weapon!” Izuku shouted as they cleared another gap. “We have to conserve energy!”

Venom didn’t respond, merely bubbling beneath Midoriya’s skin in agitation, as they tried to follow behind. He had a feeling that Izuku was right, but he still wanted to get ahead of the rest. Todoroki had crossed most of the canyon, and was heading to the last obstacle, as Katsuki was close behind, blasting away from point to point.

Godzillo watched from the stands, clicking his fingers against his arm, as they slowly turned into claw-like projections. Others were gossiping and talking amongst themselves.

“Man, that kid in first is doing amazing.” One stated.

“Yeah, I heard he’s Endeavor’s kid. Ya gotta be good if you’re the Number Two Hero’s kid, right?” Another commented. “Heroes will be lining up to make him a side-kick.”

Godzillo wasn’t so sure about that. It wasn’t just Izuku and his monstrous Quirk that was making him biased. The other one, the angry one with the explosions, was definitely a clear pick for heroes. Power, strength, absolute determination and refusal to give up. Personally, if he could, he’d take all of them to train, if he had the power and expertise to train more “normal” Quirks.

He watched as Izuku continued on with the metal arm of the robot he had killed. One of the spectators besides him muttered to another.

“What the heck is he doing with that?” One of them asked. “With his Quirk, why would he need it.”

Godzillo cleared his throat, before clicking his fang-like teeth. “It might be heavy, but it’s durable and sturdy. I ran this course back when I was a kid. It takes stress off your Quirk to use their own weapons.”

“I guess, but it would just be easier to ditch it, right?” The Spectator remarked.

“Let’s wait and see what he wants to do.” Godzillo remarked, stroking his chin with a single finger.

The race continued on, as Todoroki got to the last obstacle in his path. It was just an open field, dirt and nothing else, leading to the last path. He looked around in surprise at first, before looking confused. Present Mic’s voice sounded once more.

“The last obstacle is a real Mine Field folks!” He declared. “You touch those, and it’ll blow ya away. It won’t hurt you, probably, but the sound and flash will absolutely ruin your day.”

Todoroki carefully began to walk along the path, as Katsuki turned to the field, sparks and smoke flying from his palms and fingertips, as he jumped on the field without care, as an explosion sounded, and sent him flying forward. His pants and sleeves were zinged, and smoke rose from his body, but he didn’t care. His body had long adapted to explosions that made that mine explosion look like a misfired Fire Cracker. He flew by Todoroki, who glared up at him in annoyance.

“You dumbass! I’m closer to you in scores and ability to fucking Deku!” Katsuki shouted in rage. “You’re declaration of war is to the wrong person!”

He dropped down, as the Todoroki immediately lashed out, grabbed him by the arm, and spreading a small portion of frost onto his arm. Bakugou smacked his arm away with his opposite hand, and in one motion, set off a small explosion in Shoto’s face, before he leaned back, smoke and embers hitting his nose and face, but negating the worst damage.

“It looks like the leaders of the pack are neck and neck! Can one come out on top?” Present Mic announced. “Or will someone steal the spot?”

Izuku looked ahead. There was no way even with Venom’s enhanced abilites they could clear the mine field and get ahead of the two. And if he stepped or landed in the wrong spot, what’s to say the heat and noise wouldn’t hurt or kill Venom. He looked down at the metal plate he carried, and nodded, to both himself and to signal Venom.

He ran forward, swinging it overhead, before slamming it down, and sending an explosive wave upwards. Venom shrieked in agony from the noise, but Izuku bite into his lip and flipped it under them, flipping them up and over, and heading over the two. They both stopped for a moment, watching in amazement as Izuku came ahead, before landing, and jumping forward again, clearing the rest of the minefield, and smashing onto the path, creating two foot-sized craters, and as he tossed his shield away, and ran on foot towards the finish line.

“And with an amazing move, Midoriya completely takes first place!” Present Mic announced, as Bakugou immediately forgot about Todoroki, the latter doing the same, and both bolted after him.

It did not take long for Izuku to reach the finish line, stumbling slightly, as he dropped to his knees, gasping for air, as Todoroki and Bakugou came in right after.

“We have our first three! Midoriya in first, Todoroki in second, and Bakugou in third!” Present Mic shouted to the sheering crowds. “Amazing show by all!”

Todoroki looked up to the stands, as though looking for someone, as Bakugou glared with nothing but hatred and apathy at Izuku, as the latter pulled out a half-melted chocolate bar, and hastily shoved it into his mouth and chomped in down, barely swallowing, as the color returned to his face and body. He stood up, shaking still, as the others began to pour in from the other racers.

All Might watched in surprise, lacing his fingers in front of his emaciated face, smiling in wonderment and pride. Although he had first had his eye on Midoriya for a while, Todoroki and Bakugou both had amazing shows on their part. Combined with one of the older students, he didn’t know where even to begin searching for a successor.

‘Nezu was right about one thing, a Successor to One for All did walk the halls of UA.” All Might thought to himself. ‘But which one is the question, because all of them have something amazing to offer.’

He waited as the rest came in, all of struggling for air and breathing hard. Momo came in, breathing hard, looking confused and worn out. Half way through the race, she felt like she was carrying a backpack filled with rocks on her back out of nowhere.

Just as she was about to question why, Mineta’s laughter met her ears. “Haha! I’m a genius!”

“You...” She hissed in rage, before a blackened tendril wrapped around Mineta’s waist, and tossed him away, as he screamed in horror. She turned to see the tentacle retreating into Midoriya’s body, as she breathed a sigh of relief. “Thanks for that.”

Midoriya was confused at first, before Venom’s head appeared from his shoulder, turning to Momo. “No problem!”

Mineta landed a few yards away, dust blowing into the air from his impact, almost everyone ignoring it, as the last few came in, and they prepared for the next test to come from Midnight.

Godzillo grinned, as the other heroes and spectators began to gossip and talk amongest themselves.

“Man, that Todoroki was amazing. He might just be the top hero himself!” One declared.

“I’d almost root for that Bakugou. He’d give villains something to be scared of!” A second laughed.

No one spoke of the First Place winner. It didn’t surprise Godzillo. They seemed to acknowledge him with terrified glances and fearful whispers to friends, before talking about all the others. He nodded, as he focused on him.

‘What a savage Quirk, and what an intelligent user!’ He thought with a wide, almost insane grin. ‘Gruesome! It attacks like an explosion, and leaves like a storm!’

Despite everything, he had figured out what Midoriya was. And more importantly, who he was going to be taking as a sidekick.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So there's this one, setting up Godzillo and the role he'll be playing later one. Basically, he replaces All Might as the mentor/teacher figure in Izuku's life, given how radically different Venom is from One for All.
> 
> I decided to change one aspect later on, that rather then him having a eldest son ready to take his roll, Godzillo would instead have an older daughter. He still has Junior, but the new character is a slightly canon version of a video game character from way back in the series. I wanted to do a slightly different dynamic then what other Parent-child teams did in the series.


	9. Sports Festival Part 2: The Cavalry Battle.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The second part of the UA sports festival ramps up, as the students further thin out the numbers.

Todoroki watched Izuku for a moment, eyes narrowed, as he studied his classmates as the rest gathered around them from the obstacle course/foot race. He had expected him to do well, given what abilities Venom had, but for him to take first was really out of left field for him. Him and Bakugou were superior in many respects, but he had focused so hard on defeating Izuku, just because of the power he saw him yield against the Nomu. It was never stated by others, but Shoto knew that most would see Izuku as the best of their number after that battle.

‘It’s a small thing, almost a petty thing,’ He thought to himself, clenching a fist at his side. ‘But if I can top him, and with only half my power, I can do anything.’

He glared up at the stands for a moment, catching sight of the fiery visage of a certain hero among the spectators, before turning back to his rivals. Bakugou was right about one thing. He had forgotten that his other classmates could also potentially equal him. Forgetting them would be a mistake.

‘I’ll focus on Midoriya, but from now on, I have to keep an eye on Bakugou.’ He thought, glancing at the rage-filled visage of the Explosion-user.

Smoke rose dangerously from his entire body, sparks beginning to build in his hands, as Bakugou glared at Izuku from behind, who was chatting it up with his disgusting little Quirk. He wanted to desperately to smash his face in, and put him in his place once more, but as he thought about his revenge, Midnight’s voice called out above the students.

“Alright, alright! Let’s check the results!” She announced, showing the boards with the first place student, and filling down to the last, in 42nd. “For those that scored lower, don’t worry, we have something else planned for ya!”

She gestured towards the glowing monitor above her head, as she continued on. “Our next match will be; The Cavalry Battle!”

She went on to explain the rules and parts of the battle, and how each member would have point values approximate to their position finishing the race and the scores given to them by judges. As she explained she began with the first place student, Izuku himself. Midoriya waited with slight excitement, as Venom rose from behind him, his fang-filled visage grinning with morbid excitement for the coming fight.

“In first is Izuku Midoriya, with Ten Million points even!” Midnight announced, as Izuku’s eyes bulged out of his skull.

‘This can’t be real!’ He thought in terror. ‘We’re screwed!’

“Relax Deku.” Venom hissed quietly, leaning into his ear, as the other all turned to stare him, hungry and focused like wolves. “It’s just more foes to beat down.”

“This can be anyone’s game going forward kiddos!” Midnight announced. “Where ever you placed, you can now have the chance to get to the top!”

Godzillo grinned in the stands again. He had been the first and the last of the Nakajima family to get into UA, until his son made his decision on what school he wanted, at least. He had something just like this when he was a student. Though unable to go full force on most of the other students, he still had the fight for his life, especially against two of his classmates.

‘The hot-headed number 2, and the drunken Gorilla.’ He thought with a smile. ‘I have a feeling this cavalry battle is going to be even more memorable then ours.’

Bakugou stood among the crowd of students among him, many of his own classmates yelling for his attention and a chance to be one of his partners. He simply stood, a dumbfounded look on his face, as he looked among them in confusion.

“Alright, tell me all of your names and Quirks.” He stated finally, as the others recoiled in disgust.

“Are you kidding, we’re your classmates!” Mina yelled in anger.

“What a dick.” Sero muttered, shaking his head.

As he looked among them in confusion and his usual, barely contained, boiling anger, another voice called out from the crowd.

“Oi, Bakugou! You can team up with me!” The voice called, as Katsuki turned to the red-headed Kirishima.

“Oh, Weird Hair.” Bakugou muttered.

“It’s Kirishima. And our hair isn’t that different.” Ejiro grumbled in irritation. “Anyway, you want to be a rider right?”

“Yeah, what of it?”

“So you’re gonna need a front-horse that can take your explosions and keep going.” Kirishima explained.

“Someone whose not afraid to die?” Bakugou suggested.

“Exactly.” Kirishima said with a devilish grin. “You wanna take down Midoriya right? Then who better then me?”

Bakugou gave a curious look, for once his anger fading away just slightly, as he considered Kirishima’s words. He did have to admit, Kirishima’s macho attitude did strike something of a cord with him. Perhaps with him leading the attack, Bakugou could finally get at Deku, and put him beneath Bakugou’s boots where he belonged.

“You got a deal, Weird hair.” Bakugou growled with a twisted smile on his face.

Meanwhile, Midoriya was having the opposite problem. While everyone had seen his Quirk, he had the feeling he was already untouchable to most of them.

‘Did we show too much?’ He thought in misery. ‘Are they avoiding me out of fear?’

“Let them fear us.” Venom said with a proud huff. “They can watch in terror as we stomp down these pebbles to the dirt.”

‘It’s a team battle, Venom.’ Izuku said with a mental sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“And we’re a team.” Venom replied blankly, as though he still didn’t understand the rules.

“Midoriya, I wish to team up with you.” Tokayami said suddenly, coming up behind him.

Izuku almost jumped, as the Raven-headed teen stood before him, arms crossed with slight apprehension. Midoriya was shocked at first that he had sought him out of all people, but he wasn’t about to question it.

“Your Quirk and my own compliment each other greatly.” Tokayami explained. “You’re effective at long range, but are a powerhouse in close combat, while it is quite the opposite for me.”

“But we’ll be a target.” Midoriya said with slight fear, tears beginning to well up in his eyes.

“It’s a hard challenge, but between your Venom, and my Dark Shadow, I think we can win.” Tokayami said with a small smile, as his Shadowy Battle Spirit came out and gave a thumbs up.

Venom took over Izuku’s face and left, forming it into a claw, before returning the gesture, as he bared his fangs. “We’ll crush them all Tokayami.”

Venom retreated into Izuku’s body, as the two grabbed each other by the hand and nodded to one another. Izuku had hoped the two could work together, and this seemed to be their chance to do so. Izuku felt a strange feeling in the back of head, as he looked to the side, and saw Uraraka’s smiling face before him.

“Hey Deku, you want to work together?” She said exictedly.

“Me, really? My 10 million points will make us both a target.” He said, again almost sounding like he was ready to break down and cry.

“You should always work with your friends!” She said with a smile.

He clenched up, making a strange face somewhere between absolute joy, and absolute agony. Uraraka withdrew slightly.

“Oh, you don’t like so good Deku.” She remarked.

“Can’t you act normal for once around her?” Venom hissed in annoyance. “You are making us look bad.”

“I’m trying.” He mumbled, eyes shut, as she looked at him in confusion.

“We are never going to gain her as a mate if you act like this.” Venom hissed, as Izuku’s eyes shut open, and he looked down for a moment.

“What did you say?”

“Nothing, just concentrate.” Venom replied quickly. “We have a fight to win. Go get Iida to finish your little fourso...group.”

Izuku nodded, and looked to his glasses wearing friend, who seemed distracted and distant, looking between Izuku and Todoroki uncertainty, before turning to face his approaching friend. Izuku smiled slightly, as he waved to him.

“Iida, you should join us.” Izuku stated. “We could win easy, especially with your abilities combined with ours.”

“Yeah, friends should always stick together.” Uraraka pipped up behind him, as Tokayami nodded to him.

He seemed to consider their words, before slowly shaking his head. “I agree with you, but I cannot.”

“Why?” Izuku said in confusion.

“Todoroki isn’t the only one that sees you as a bit of a rival.” Iida admitted, readjusting the glasses on his face. “I want to, but I feel I’m being left behind by you, and I need to aim high if I’m going to get anywhere. You understand right?”

Izuku’s eye twitched as a number of vengeful, hate-filled thoughts came into his mind, before he shook them off. “I get it. Good luck, whichever team you go with.”

Tenya nodded to him with a small smile, before walking past Izuku. “I wish you luck in the coming fight.”

“You too.”

Izuku was about to search for someone else to complete his team, but he didn’t have long to search, when a pink-haired girl with goggles zoomed into his location, faster then he would’ve thought possible. He almost jumped out of his skin in surprise, and even Venom didn’t seem to have precognition or the like about her arrival.

“Let me join your team!” She said excitedly. “I want the chance to show off my babies!”

“Wow, wow, too close!” Izuku stated in surprise, as Venom squirmed under his skin.

“I feel uncomfortable, Deky.” The Symbiote remarked.

“I’m Mei Hatsume! Support Course!” She declared. “We don’t know each other, but being with you means my Super-Cute babies will be right in the spotline, for all to see!”

“W...wait, babies? What are you…?” Uraraka remarked nervously, taken aback by how….aggressive Mei could be.

“I have all sorts of gadgets you could use, straight from my support course workshop!” She declared.

‘Oh..she doesn’t care.’ Ochako sighed to herself, as she continued gabbing with Izuku.

“Take for example this!” Mei declared, taking out a large white backpack for Izuku to see. “I based it off a Pro-Hero’s own jetpack, with alterations made to it’s design and innerworkings.”

“Oh, you mean Air Jet?” Izuku said with barley contained excitement, drawing close to get a better look at it. “His agency worked in my town for a bit, he’s so cool.”

They began to exchange everything they knew about him and the other heroes and devices they used, and how they tied into Hatsume’s work and devices of her own. Tokoyami scratched the side of his beak slightly, before glancing at Uraraka.

“They certainly get along.” She said deadpan.

“Indeed, but their hero expertise should come in handy in the coming battle.” Tokoyami remarked.

“Well, we have strength, range, support and mobility.” Izuku said, turning to the rest of his team. “I think we got this.”

Shoto stood among his own team, Iida, Momo and Denki all ready to go. He stretched his shoulders and cracked his arms as he looked over his team.

“I believe our team’s formation will be the most stable.” Shoto began. “Kaminari, you will protect our left, using your electricity to keep others at bay. Yaoyoruzu, you will provide insulation and assist in mobility. Tenya, your speed and physicality in the front will be the most help.”

“Your fire and ice will make good for deterrent and ranged combat, correct?” Iida asked, stretching and preparing his legs for the fight to come.

“No, only my ice.” Todoroki replied coldly, his voice as chilled and unfeeling as the very ice he could control and command. “I never use my left.”

Yaoyoruzu and Iida looked at each other in slight confusion for a moment, wanting to question his attitude, but the cold rage burning in his eyes told them it would be better to not touch the issue.

Moments later, the teams were organized and ready, prepped and ready for battle, their team leaders carried by the rest, as the excitement built and buzzed in the air. Venom squirmed beneath Izuku’s skin for a moment, the excitement getting to him.

“Are your teams ready? Are you all prepared?” Present Mic declared. “If not, too bad, it’s time to get ready.”

The team tensed up and readied, Bakugou sitting proudly among his troops, Todoroki calmed and relaxed, but shooting one last glare at the stands, and Midoriya confident, as Venom buzzed within him, calling for blood, his primal roars within his mind hardly controlled, as he sent a mental command for Venom to relax and lay off a bit.

“Three!”

“There is only...” Bakugou began, glaring at Izuku.

“Two!”

“One target...” Todoroki stated, flexing his fingers on his right hand.

“ONE, GO!”

Midoriya readied himself and began to plan his first attack, towards Todoroki. After all, if he wanted a fight, Izuku would give him one. As he thought however, two teams ran straight at him, one made up of Class B members, the others of Jiro, Koda, Sero and Hagakure.

“We’re coming for you Midoriya!” Hagakure, sounding a little too bloodthirsty and Venom-like.

Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu, the Class B student made of Iron, shouted above the others. “This whole battle is just a fight for the 10 Million points. Nothing else matters!”

“Two teams are already attacking us!” Midoriya exclaimed in shock.

“Let them come!” Venom growled.

“Such is the fate of those who become the hunted,” Tokayami remarked, turning to Izuku. “What is your plan of action?”

“Fight them!” Venom’s voice roared into his ears.

“Let’s avoid them for now.” Midoriya said, Dark Shadow flaring to life in front of it’s master.

As they tried to retreat, one of the Class-B students slammed his foot into the ground, the area in front of him darkening and changing, as they suddenly found themselves sinking into the ground as though it was mud. Team Midoriya struggled against the pull of the muck and quagmire. Venom lashed out with his tentacles, trying to strike at the solid ground and push them up wards.

“Guys, be careful, we’re getting air-born!” Midoriya warned to his team, as he clicked a button, activating the jet pack.

Though there was initial resistance, the force of the jet pack was too great for the quagmire created by the Class-1B student, and his team found themselves launched skywards. Everyone stopped for a moment and watched in amazement as he flew overhead, the rocket pack roaring to life, as Jiro focused her glare at them.

“I got it.” She muttered, her ear phone jacks extending from her ear towards them, before Dark Shadow swiped in front of him, smacking them away.

“Well done Dark Shadow, be sure to cover all our blind spots.” Tokayami remarked.

“Gotcha!” The Ghostly figure remarked with a thumbs up.

“We’re landing!” Uraraka reported, as they sat down.

The rocket pack shut off, as Venom shock slightly in agitation and pain. It wasn’t enough to separate or damage him, but the loud noise was definitely not welcome. Hatsume looked up with an excited grin as they touched down.

“So, what do you think?” She asked. “Aren’t my babies just the cutest and greatest?”

“Yeah, they’re amazing actually.” Midoriya replied.

Uraraka made a pouting face, and muttered to herself. “I was floating you all...”

“Something’s wrong.” Venom reported. “I can feel it.”

“What do you mean, Venom?” Izuku asked aloud, looking around.

The others looked up at him in confusion, as Venom’s tentacles sprouted a few feet around Izuku, shifting and moving about, as if trying to detect any changes in the air or incoming attacks, but nothing happened.

“Venom, are you glitching?” Izuku asked, looking a little confused. “That rocket pack was loud...”

“I know there’s a threat!” Venom growled in annoyance.

Toru pointed out at the Midoriya and his team. “Forward guys, we can still catch them!”

“Toru, where’s our headband?” Jiro asked, as Monoma of Class-1B and his squadron flew by, happily twirling their handbands on his finger.

“Opportunity always knocks for the aware.” Monoma muttered to himself with a sly grin.

“Barely two minutes in and already the battlefield’s turned into a scramble.” Present Mic announced. “Who will be the one to dethrone Midoriya?”

“Oh this isn’t a scramble.” Shoji declared, rushing at Team Midoriya, his extra arms folded over the top of him, like a large tent. “It’s a one-sided massacre!”

“Shoji’s alone?!” Uraraka yelled in surprise. “It’s a cavalary battle!”

Izuku’s eyes flashed black for a moment, as he leaned back slightly. “There’s two beneath his limbs.”

He looked around, seeing they were almost surrounded again. “Time to lift off Uraraka!”

She tried to activate one of the boots, but found her foot stuck to the ground. The group looked down in shock to see a purple, gooey ball adhering to her sole. 

“That’s Mineta’s!” Midoriya stated, glancing back at Shoji’s charging form. “He must be one of the two up top.”

“You’re right Midoriya.” Mineta said with a sly grin, as he emerged, waving to him.

A tongue lashed out from his left, before Venom raised Izuku’s right arm, projecting a blackened shield of biomass from his arm, and deflecting the tongue away from his host.

“Asui too?” Midoirya remarked.

“Good block Midoriya and Venom.” She remarked, emerging from Shoji’s arms too, though with a slightly disgusted look on her face. Perhaps Venom didn’t taste that good. “But call me Tsu!”

“We’re getting out of here.” Midoriya declared, Venom retreating into his body, shuddering at the mere idea of that horrific noise machine.

“Can’t we go offensive?” Venom demanded within his head, as the Jet Pack roared to life and carried them away again.

‘We can’t afford to blow all our power this early.’ Izuku mentally replied, as they roared into the air.

“You’re getting pretty full of yourself, aren’t ya, you cocky bastard!” Bakugou roared to their left, as he lifted into the beside, a trail of smoke and fire behind him.

“Too weak from Jet Pack to fight!” Venom hissed.

Bakugou reached forward, sparks building on his fingertips, before Dark Shadow rose to cover them. The explosion tore through the blackened mass, as Tokoyami flinched in agony, Bakugou recoiling in surprise. 

“You’re…!” He yelled in surprise, before one of Venom’s tentacles lashed out and struck him in the chest.

It wasn’t hard, Venom still too weakened from the noise of the jetpack to hit hard to hurt, but it did knock him away as they landed. Indeed, his yell towards the Team was less one of pain or damage, and more of pure, nearly unrestrained rage at being denied his prize. A long stretch of tape shot outwards, and struck him from behind, before pulling him right back to his team.

“We’re done to the halfway mark, and our teams are already going all out!” Present Mic announced. “Let’s see how the scores stack up!”

A large screen flashed to life above the stands, everyone to look at it, as Mic and Aizawa looked down at the council, before nearly everyone’s expressions turned to utter confusion. Even Godzillo, with how carefully he had been watching all of them, had barely noticed the one team pulling a fast one on all the rest.

“Other then Midoriya, Class-1A isn’t looking so good.” Present Mic said with confusion, scratching his head in confusion. “Even Team Bakugou is sitting at zero.”

As Bakugou had landed, planning his next attack to knock Midoriya out, and take the 10 million for himself, another team race behind and snatched his headband away.

“Too simple, too simple!” An annoying voice, that, in Bakugou’s mind, was begging to be punched out, taunted him. “As always, too easy Class-A.”

Bakugou turned in rage, clenching his fists. “Give that back, I’ll kill you!”

“When Midnight announced we’d be having a race, it didn’t take a genius to figure out they’d be looking to weed out some, but not most, of the students.” Monoma taunted. “You barreled ahead, while we sat back and planned our attacks accordingly.”

“The whole class was in on this?” Kirishima asked in surprise.

“No, but that suits me just fine.” Monoma said, twirling the headband on his finger. “Perhaps, you should learn to fight on your own. That Midoriya guy, from the sounds of it, did most of the fighting for you.”

He grinned madly at Bakugou. “You seem to hide behind him too much.”

Bakugou’s eyes burned with white-hot rage, as the rest of his team shuddered in fright at the sight of him. He shook with barely contained anger, the malefic killing intent freezing Monoma’s team in place for a moment, as Bakugou clenched his teeth, so hard, Kirishima and Mina worried he would shatter them.

“Kirishima, change of plans.” Bakugou said, quietly. “Before we hit Deku, I’m gonna tear everyone of them open!”

Midoriya watched, as he and his team tried to put distance between themselves and Bakugou’s, before coming to a stop.

‘They seem eager to knock all of Class-1A down a peg, but don’t seem particularly dead-set on me.’ Midoriya thought, before speaking to his team. “I think evading won’t be so hard now.”

“You didn’t think it would be that easy, did you?” Todoroki’s cold voice spoke above the chaos of the battlefield.

His team stood before Midoriya’s, all of them focused and ready. “We’re coming for you.”

Izuku clenched his jaw in worry, as an ice cold air blew from Todoroki’s side, white-blue crystals building from his fingers and palm. Venom summoned three tentacles from Izuku’s back and chest, winding around him, prepared to attack or defend any incoming attacks.

“With the match half way over, the question remains!” Present Mic said with excitement. “Who will wear the 10 million point crown?”

Bakugou and his team faced Monoma, as another of Class-1B, moved past him, turning slightly in annoyance. 

“Monoma, keep moving! No need to add insult to injury.” She warned.

“You’re right, plenty of heroes have to deal with villains they’ve scorned already.” Monoma said, giving Bakugou a wry smile. “We’re done here.”

His team turned to leave, as Bakugou breathed in heavily, growling like a feral animal. He slammed his fist into his palm, creating a large explosion, as his team looked up in worry.

“Bakugou calm down, we can’t get our points back if you run in wild.” Kirishima warned.

“Don’t you worry Kirishima, I’m as calm as I can be.” Bakugou replied with a wild rage in his eyes, and absolutely not calm.

As Bakugou gunned for Monoma and his team, Team Midoriya and Todoroki squared off, readying themselves for the battle to come. Team Todoroki began to make their way to Midoriya, as Dark Shadow manifested, spreading it’s clawed hands outwards, Venom’s tentacles moving further out and away to give Izuku further range.

“Kaminari, prepare your all-out attack, Yaoyoruzu, prepare our defenses.” Shoto commanded, as the other teams began to circle as well, eager to get the points before they could.

As the other teams closed in, electric shots arcs out across the entire field, horrified yells and screams of pain echoing out, as Momo handed Shoto a rod she had grown from her arm. He raised it up, before slamming it down on the ground, and sending ice from his hand, into the pole, and spreading out onto the field around, before soon freezing the legs and feet of the other teams onto the ground. Everyone struggled to get free, as Shoto ran by, snatching headbands from several of the remaining teams.

“I’ll take these off your hands.” Shoto remarked to the team as he passed by.

“Impressive. He must’ve recalled how some managed to dodge his freezing,” Aizawa remarked. “So he used Kaminari’s strategy to counter that.”

Dark Shadow extended itself from Tokoyami, and lashed out with it’s left hand trying to grab at Todoroki’s headbands, before Yaoyoruzu created a massive metal pad from her arm, blocking Dark Shadow, as Izuku sent out two of Venom’s tentacles to attack from the other side, snaking and lashing outwards quicker then Momo could react, but narrowly blocked by arcs of Kaminari’s electricity. Venom snarled in Izuku’s ear, pulling back in pain from the attack.

“You ok Venom?” Izuku asked.

“It’s not fire or sound,” Venom growled in irritation. “But that did hurt me badly.”

Izuku didn’t have time to ask how badly, before he tried to activate his jet pack, and get away. Sparks and smoke puffed from it, but nothing happened.

“My baby must’ve been zapped.” Hatusme remarked, sadly, giving it a pat. “Oh, poor thing. I’m gonna have to make some tune-ups.”

“This isn’t good.” Izuku said. “We’re gonna have to fight. And Momo looks like the biggest threat.”

“No, Kaminari.” Tokoyami corrected. “My Dark Shadow is vulnerable to high light. He’s stronger in darkness, but harder to control.”

Venom’s head quickly sprouted from Izuku’s shoulder. “Does anyone know this?”

“Just Koji, but he doesn’t talk much.” Tokoyami remarked.

“So we’ll bluff them.” Venom suggested with a malefic smile, as Izuku nodded and finished his statement. “Right, they wont know want you can do.”

Katsuki meanwhile, charged at Monoma, who released an explosive blast right in his face.

“Oh, what a nice Quirk.” He remarked, as the smoke cleared, Bakugou cursing in rage as he cleared the smoke and embers from his face.

He swung again at Monoma, an explosion tear through the area, before the smoke cleared once more to reveal Monoma blocking his attack with his arms braced against each other, his body hardened like a rock.

“What, now my Quirk?” Kirishima shouted. “What the heck?!”

“He’s just a copy-cat, nothing more.” Bakugou remarked, withdrawing and clenching a fist in rage.

“Ding ding, how very nice of you to finally catch up.” Monoma remarked.

Suddenly a blast of thick, creamy liquid shot out, caking both Kirishima and Mina’s feet, as they struggled to get free. Yet another of Class-1B had shown up to block their way, as a vein throbbed in Bakugou’s forehead.

“Ah, Bondo.” Monoma remarked, as his team began to turn and make their getaway. “We should have more then enough, let’s get out of here.”

They made their way, as Bakugou’s team struggled to get loose, before Monoma turned, waving sarcastically towards Bakugou.

“Don’t be mad now, you brought this on yourself.” He said, giving a small wave, as a tiny explosion burst to life in his palm. “What was that pledge you made at the start? Must look really stupid now, huh?”

Bakugou clenched his teeth in rage, as Mina worked on melting the glue that now coated them. He was eerily silent, his teammates watching him slightly in worry and terror, as heat built up in his hands once more.

“I’m not just taking first.” He declared quietly, as they broke free. “I’m taking the firsts to end all First places!”

“With one minute left to go, we are seeing a big shake-up with everything!” Present Mic shouted. “Who in Class A will be able to keep their points?”

“Todoroki, I’m about to do something that will render me useless for the rest of the match.” Iida warned, as his leg engines began to heat up. “Be sure you’re ready, alright?”

Shoto was confused, but said nothing, as an explosion tore through Iida engines, carrying the rest along with him towards Midoriya and his team, they tore through the air, Yaoyoruzu, Kaminari and Todoroki all wondering if the force their speed and the air velocity would tear them to shreds, as Shoto reached out and grabbed the head band from Izuku despite the air in his eyes. They skidded to a stop just outside the out of bounds line, as Midoirya stood there confused, blinking in surprise.

The rest of his team was also taken back. One moment, Team Todoroki stood before them, and in the blink of an eye, he was gone. They followed the trail of smoke and fire to where Team Todoroki was now, Iida’s engines and mufflers sputtering smoke, the tips of the mufflers now glowing red from the heat.

“In a move too fast for the naked eye, Team Todoroki pulls ahead!” Present Mic announced, as Shoto tied the headband around his head.

“Iida, what was that?”

“It’s a secret family technique, I have to elevate my torque and RPM to past the limits to do it.” Iida explained. “The kickback, however, renders me useless for a while now.”

Iida turned to Midoriya, who was only now turning to face them. “Like I said before Midoriya, I’m challenging you as well!”

He gave a confident grin of audacity, as Izuku returned the smile himself. Despite his agitation, he couldn’t deny he was impressed by his determination. He pointed forward to the rest of his team.

“We need to charge forward!” He said, Venom’s tentacles springing from his back. 

“Not with Kaminari there, we should go after another team’s points!” Tokoyami responded, looking at the electric quirk-user in worry.

“There’s no time, we need to get those back.” Midoriya said, as the team of the team began to move forward.

He glanced back in surprise, to see Uraraka glaring at them in determination. “We’re going forward, Deku!”

“She never ceases to amaze.” Venom remarked with a chuckle. “Come Deku, let’s slaughter them.”

Tokoyami seemed to hesitate for a moment, before joining the charge. “I trust you, Midoriya, no matter what.”

The time seemed to slow, as they got in close, the teams now preparing for the melee ahead. Izuku’s team had positioned themselves towards Shoto’s other arm, as Venom coated and overtook his hands, turning them into almost oversized claws, before they began to close in on Todoroki, Izuku’s eyes going black as Venom began to takeover his body and motor functions for the battle to come. Even with tongues of flame burning on Todoroki’s left arm and face, Venom didn’t care, swallowing his fear and aversion for the flames, to push forward.

‘Everyone’s riding on me and my leadership,’ Midoriya thought, glaring at Todoroki. ‘We have to win this!’

Monoma and his team, meanwhile, was a comfortable distance from any of the others. He grinned confidently to himself, nodding slightly as he looked at the scores and the placement. He was certain they had put Class-1A in their place and finally gotten the respect they deserved. He was about to congratulate his team on a job well done, before he heard a familiar shout behind him.

“Wait one minute you fucking waste of oxygen!” Bakugou shouted.

“My my, persistent aren’t you?” Monoma remarked, turning to him. “That should...”

Bakugou exploded off his team like they were a launch pad, launching himself at them once more as Kirishima shouted at him to stay with the group.

“Tsuburaba, Guard!” Monoma shouted suddenly, taken a back by the speed and ferocity of Bakugou’s counterattack.

Bakugou got within arm’s reach of them before, Tsuburaba took a deep breath and breathed out in a concentrated stream, creating a near-invisible, glass-like shield, that Bakugou hit and landed on, striking it angrily, his eyes wide with determination and the usual rage boiling in them. Monoma and the team laughed nervously, before Bakugou threw back his hand and smashed through the wall, shattering it like glass, as he reached in and ripped the top two headbands away from Monoma, who could only watch in shook as Bakugou yanked them away, before a roll of tape lashed out, stuck to his back, and pulled him back to his team.

“That was amazing Bakugou!” Kirishima shouted in surprise.

“What a shake-up. With 285 points, Team Bakugou moves to Third place.” Present Mic announced.

Aizawa watched, his eyes, though still bored and cold, seemed to perk up slightly at the sight of the battle. “Monoma’s strategy was good, rational, almost flawless even. But he didn’t take into account Bakugou’s sheer, overwhelming tenacity.”

Bakugou began to bash his fist into Kirishima’s hardened skull as he roared at his team to keep going. “We’re not settling for some half-assed first place! We’re getting all our points back, and then going after Deku and Icy-Hot!”

Team Monoma had wisely withdrawn and made their way further back, shielding their pointed from the still-frozen in place Teams from before, as they tried to put distance between themselves and Team Bakugou. Still, Bakugou’s team was now infected with the same zeal as he, and were running as fast they could manage to get them back. Bakugou lifting up his leg, clearing a way for Seto.

“Soy Sauce Face, lay down some tape to their left!” Bakugou ordered quickly.

“It’s Seto, and what the hell is Soy Sauce face?” He shouted in indignation.

“Raccoon Eyes, lay down slime in the direction we’re going.” Bakugou ordered next.

“It’s Mina Ashido!” She shouted in anger, as she held up one hand and blasted acid outwards towards Team Monoma.

The acid quickly smoothed over the ground, removing the friction, as Seto pulled them in with the tape from his arm. Bakugou glared at them, Team Monoma mystified at what he was doing, before realization came to them, but, by then it was too late, Bakugou’s team sliding past them, as he snatched the headbands away and left them with nothing.

His team continued on, as a maniac grin spread across his face. “Next up, Deku and Icy-Hot!”

The stands roared with amazement at the display, Godzillo nodding slightly as he watched the exchange. 

‘What a beast of a kid.’ He thought, stroking the pointed scales on his chin. ‘

Meanwhile, Todoroki and Izuku were ready to brawl, the fires gathering across Todoroki’s arm, as Izuku lashed out with a left hook, striking him in the side of the face, as he lurched in surprise. It wasn’t full power, but it was enough to knock Todoroki back and open him up, as Izuku reached in and grabbed two Head bands from him. Shoto pushed back against his Venom enhanced fist, glaring in cold fury at Izuku, as he brought his fire hand closer, before stopping himself.

This gave Izuku enough time to tear them away and bring them back to his team.

“I got it!” He shouted, as they pulled back. He looked down at his hand, only to see a surprise in store. 70 and 105. “Wait, they switched them!”

“Shake it off Todoroki.” Iida advised, as he banished the flames form his hand. “We’re still in this remember.”

“Time is almost up everyone, say it with me!” Present Mic shouted. “10!”

Team Midoriya pushed at Todoroki, as his team began to prepare for another attack, Yaoyoruzu preparing another object, as cold and ice crystals built in his limbs.

9

Team Bakugou approached, Seto and Mina preparing their ranged attacks, as Bakugou launched himself again at both teams, looking at both, before glaring at Shoto.

8

7

Dark Shadow loomed overhead, as Kaminari short-circuited, overcharging his powers, as Venom coated Midoriya’s upperbody this team, his savage visage snapping and growling at them, so focused was he on winning.  
6

5

4

The teams all got within range, Bakugou reaching towards Todoroki, as Dark Shadow prepared another attack. This was it, all or nothing.

3

2

“Time is up!”

Bakugou stopped in midair for a moment, and with nothing to hold him, he fell to the ground with a crash, even the other teams flinching from how hard he landed. Midoriya grimaced, pressing his fist against his forehead in frustration, as Venom slide and disappeared into his body once more.

“In first place, it’s Team Todoroki!” Present Mic announced, as Shoto and his team slide down, Todoroki looking distant and uncertain.

“In second place, it’s Team Bakugou!” Stated as Bakugou knelled on the ground, roaring in the air like a wild animal that had just been fatally shot. The rest of his team watched him, worried he’d lose what sanity he had left.

Present Mic continued, unperturbed. “And in Third is Team Testu...wait, what? Team Shinso? How did this happen?”

Shinso gave a sly grin to the rest of his team, who looked confused at him, not sure how they had gotten there. “Thanks for the help.”

“And in Fourth is Team Midoriya!” Present Mic shouted. 

“Wait, how?” Izuku asked in surprise, turning to Uraraka and Hatsume, who were pointing at Tokoyami, who was nonplussed.

He stood coolly back, arms crossed, as Dark Shadow came into view, a headband worth 615 points in it’s mouth. “Your attack left Todoroki shaken and open. I couldn’t get the original, but you did let me get this one from him. Thank you.”

Water shot out of Midoriya’s eyes like a geyser, unable to hold back the flow of emotion, and tears, as Venom groaned in his head in embarrassment. Hatsume continued to tinker with her jetpack, as Ochako petted a blushing Dark Shadow across the head.

“With that done, we’ll precede with the rest of the afternoon competitions after a one hour lunch break.” Present Mic declared. “Hey Eraserhead, you want to grab some nachos?”

“I just want to nap.” Aizawa grumbled to himself, shaking his head.

The teams began to shuttle themselves towards the rest of the arena, such as the food courts and other places, as they gossiped among themselves. Midoriya was with them, wiping away and drying his eyes, and talking with them just as much as he was with Venom.

“We should get some chocolate cake before the fights begin!” Venom stated, looking around suspiciously at them. “Before the rest pick it over.”

“Ven, they’ve got plenty of cake, calm down.” Izuku remarked. “Don’t be so greedy.”

“Will they have tattor tots?” Venom demanded.

“I’m not sure.” Izuku said, scratching his chin. “Probably French Fires though.”

Venom made a disgruntled huff, before hiding away from sight once more. He was about to join the lunch line, when Shoto grabbed his shoulder.

“We need to talk,” Shoto remarked quietly. “After you eat, but before we start the competition again, got it?”

Before he could respond, Shoto melted back into the crowd without another word, as Izuku watched him in confusion.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Endeavor made his way to the bathrooms, fires burning all around, walking down a set of stairs, as a familiar figure stood behind him. He froze, even without looking he knew who it was.

“Hey, Endeavor, it’s been quite a while, want to grab some tea?” All Might offered.

Endeavor turned to look over his shoulder, glaring at the Number One, neither moving for a moment.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Godzillo stood in the lunch line, just gathering his foodstuffs and silverware, a large bowl of nachos, curly fries and various other foods awaiting him, drenched in cheese, hot sauce and jalapenos, and whatever other dangerous peppers he could grab or bring from home. He wasn’t a pepper eater for sure, but he had developed a taste for food with a little fire from Rodan, who he was calling up on his phone.

“Oi! What the hell you tryin’ to sell!” Rodan shouted into the phone, Godzillo flinching.

“Rodan, knock it off.” He said coldly.

“Oh, Goj, it’s you, sorry.” Rodan said. “I’ve had telemarketeers up the ass man.”

“Well, have you watched the festival yet?” Godzillo asked.

“Yeah, yeah, I did.” Rodan remarked grumpily. “They got doing guard duty here, but I caught the game. Prefer to be watchin’ Soccer and the Santos Langua.”

“Did you see that Izuku kid?” Godzillo said, ignoring his complaints.

“Yeah, spooky shit, but cool.” Rodan remarked.

“He’s the one that I want.” Godzillo said, as he watched Izuku and the rest of his classmates make their way to the lunchlines, talking among themselves. “I think I might like teaching him.”

“If you say so.” Rodan remarked. “I’d be careful. The guys and Spooks working here are...spooked by him. What are they working on here?”

“I’ve got the situation handled, tell them to keep it cool.” Godzillo remarked coldly. “Anything else?”

“Nah, I can’t wait to get outta here though,” Rodan replied. “My wings are aching already.”

“Alright, don’t go too crazy in there, Fire Demon.” Godzillo replied.

“You too Monster King.” Rodan said with a chuckle, as he hung up.

Godzillo sat back, popping a pepper into his mouth, as he watched Izuku out the side of his eyes, before looking dead ahead. There was a lot about to happen, he had to be sure he was ready for everything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh this was a big one. I hope you all are staying safe out there, and keeping yourselves safe. Don't go too crazy alright?
> 
> I was working on changing some aspects of the fight for the chapter, while adding in hints of something much bigger going on with the Symbiotes and our favorite Kaiju Pro.


	10. Sports Festival Part 3:The Gladiator Matches.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The battles of the Sports Festival begin to reach their end, as Midoriya faces his first opponent, who might just be too much even for his alien-enhanced powers.

Izuku and the rest had been busy easy eating, talking and laughing in the mess halls of the arena, as Midoriya and Venom began to mentally trade notes and ideas for the next few battles to come, finding some time to scoot away from the others to talk amongst themselves, even if it made Izuku look like a weird loner, especially when his facial expressions changed or reacted to Venom's more outlandish suggestions and input.

“What do you think Icy-Hot wants to discuss?” Venom asked, as Izuku dug into his food.

‘I have no idea.’ He thought uncertainly. ‘He seems keen on beating us?’

“Despite how great we are, in the cosmic sense of things,” Venom observed with a huff. “We’re not exactly the greatest in this class.”

‘I know. We’re not specialized, and unless we go all-out with you, we’re not as fast as Iida and all.’ He thought. ‘Or strong as….’

“I know.” Venom hissed. “But perhaps it has nothing to do with class scores and grades.”

Izuku was confused for a moment as he drank his water, raising an eyebrow in silence. ‘What do you mean.’

“We were able to defeat that Nomu guy on our own.” Venom hissed with pride, as Izuku’s mind flashed back to the battle. “That has got to be a sour point that one as powerful as he couldn’t.”

‘I’m pretty sure he could’ve done some damage if he got there in time.’ Izuku thought, glancing at where Todoroki was seated. ‘Freezing the Nomu solid would’ve done more damage then our attacks, actually.’

There was silence for a moment, as Izuku ate in peace, Venom withdrawing slightly from the conversation to think about something else. Izuku didn’t want to push anything, and went back to talking and laughing with the others. It was relaxing moment, a calm before the battles started up again.   
\\\\\\\\\\\  
All Might stood above the stairway, in the door, looking at Endeavor with a grin. Endeavor glared up at him with a cold, silent fury that contrasted with the fires around his body.

“It’s been, what, ten years since we last talked?” All Might asked. “Perhaps we could get some tea, catch up.”

“Hmm, as if I’d take tea with you.” Endeavor grumbled. “I need to take a leak. Get lost.”

Endeavor began to march down the stairs, as All Might laughed heartily, flipping and spinning in the air, before landing in front of him with a wider grin.

“Ah, don’t be like that my old friend!” All Might remarked.

Endeavor glared at him with barely contained hatred and rage, holding himself back from removing All Might from his path.

“Your son Little Shoto has done quite a great job, and all without his fires.” All Might stated. “You must’ve trained him well.”

“What are you saying?” Endeavor grumbled.

“I was wondering if you could give me pointers on training the next generation.” All Might asked, bowing his head in a hyperbolic fashion. “I got a few who are amazing, but I’m having a bit of trouble...”

“As if I’d share any secrets with you.” Endeavor grumbled, shoving past him. “Always with that stupid smile and happy-go-lucky bullshit. I’ve always hated that.”

He walked past, his grin widening, as his bloodshot eyes focused ahead, All Might looking at him uncertaintly. Endeavor did not turn, even as he continued speaking.

“Know this, I’ll mold him into a hero that surpasses even you. It’s why I made that kid.” Endeavor declared, as All Might looked slightly confused and worried at his Fellow hero. “He might be going through a rebellious phase right now, but once he’s over it, he’ll surpass even you.”

All Might looked back at him, as he walked away, not sure at all if Endeavor was all that well mentally. If what he said was true, what did that mean for the lengths Endeavor had gone to, to top him in heroics.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Shoto and Izuku had made their way to one of the entrances outside of the areas the other students and contestants would be situated in and walking around in. They stood opposite of each other, leaning against the wall, as the sun light poured in. There was silence for a moment, as Izuku looked at Shoto in the eye, the red and white-haired student unmoving, standing as firm and cold as a statue.

Finally, after a moment, Shoto breathed in, and spoke. “That power of yours. I don’t know how, but are you the ‘Jet-Black Vigilante’ from a while back?”

Izuku froze slightly in his shoes, hands shaking slightly as he tried to figure out an answer, before shrugging. “I get that a lot, but we’re no the same.”

“I don’t know what else it could be,” Todoroki remarked, as though Izuku hadn’t even spoken. “But you knew how to fight, but you haven’t talked about any training.”

“I know there’s a lot of strange stuff going on,” Izuku began to blabber on nervously, as Venom shrunk away in his body, as though nervous of Shoto’s questioning. “You don’t have to believe me, but it’s not like that at all.”

“Whatever power you call it, Venom or Jet, you did force me to break my oath.” Todoroki replied, holding up his left arm. “You made me use my Left side.”

Izuku looked at him with uncertainty. “Why tell me this? Bakugou’s probably better then me.”

“Maybe so, but even without the news, people know you fought that Nomu guy on your own.” Shoto stated, his voice like an unfeeling blizzard cutting into Izuku's soul. “You have eyes on you. If I can win without my left, that’s proof enough I can outdo my father without his lousy Quirk.”

He stood for a moment, looking at Izuku, perhaps giving him time to talk things over with Venom and straighten things out, before turning to leave.

“Sorry to waste your time.” Shoto replied. “Whatever the secrets of your Quirk are, keep it to yourself if you want. Just no I have to win and show my father up.”

“Why your father?” Izuku asked, unsure if even he wanted to open that wound.

Shoto stopped, looking up at the trees before them, not turning to face Midoriya. “He’s the reason my mother gave me this scar.”

He didn’t need to say anything else for Izuku to get the picture, who reeled back slightly at his words, rubbing the back of his knuckles with his fingers nervously. Shoto was better then him in almost everyway it seemed. His power was amazing and didn’t seem to have any draw backs, wouldn’t terrify people that needed saving, and was his own through and through. Izuku scratched the back of his neck, as he looked at Shoto for a moment, before straightening and stepping out into the sun as well. Terrifying or not, His power or not, he gotten here all the same, and would prove he was worthy of being a hero.

“Todoroki, I came this far because of other people pushing me along.” He said, thinking of the people in his life, from his mother, Ochako, and even Venom, and the countless friends he had made that pushed him along. “I knows it’s not like yours, but my motivation is to reach the top for them, to pay them back for helping me.”

Shoto turned to look at him, his expression unmoving. “You’re one of the best, but I’m not gonna stop aiming for the top. I’m returning your Declaration of War with my own. I’m not going to beat you alone. It will be me, Venom, and everyone counting on me!”

Venom seemed touched, the Symbiote bubbling happily within Izuku’s mind. Perhaps it was the compliment and Izuku embracing their partnership. Perhaps it was because he wanted to snap Todoroki like a twig. While Izuku hoped it wasn’t the latter, he knew the alien creature would be there for him throughout their fight.

Shoto simply nodded, hands in his pockets, as he turned and left, Izuku going his own way, as Venom manifested out of his shoulder. As the two walked away, Bakugou looked around the corner, having been out of sight the whole time, nodding slightly to himself. He wasn't sure how to process all of it, but he would be mindful of all the things he had just heard, and would be thinking about how to apply their weaknesses in the coming fights, all to get to the top.

“You are acting more assertive and less Loser-y.” Venom observed. “I like it.”

“I want to be a hero like All Might,” Izuku replied to his Symbiote. “I can’t back down from this.”

“So, what’s the deal with his parent, can’t he just kill him and be done with it?” Venom asked, curious. “I know some humans and other species, are fund of their parents, but some of this confuses me.”

“That’s no how we deal with things here,” Izuku said shocked. “Why would we kill our parents dude?”

“I ate my parent.” Venom said, as Izuku recoiled in shock. “It is the tradition of Klyntar to consume their parents or children.”

“Why the hell would you do that?” Izuku asked, shocked. 

“In our traditions, the parent, after giving birth, will be challenged by their child, who must find a host and gain their powers in a year or so.” Venom explained. “The parent holds power, and child desires it. When they battle in a ritual duel, the loser is devoured, and the winner gains their powers. Either the child will be even stronger, or the parent will be augmented, but we always become stronger.”

“So, I take it you’ve eaten your kids?” Izuku asked, not sure he wanted to learn the answer.

“I’ve reproduced little throughout my centuries. Three or four times at most.” Venom remarked, before shuddering slightly. “One, however, has remained quite aggressive in trying to kill me. He’s a criminal among my entire species. His name is Profanity to all my kind scattered among the stars.”

Izuku cringed slightly. He didn’t even want to broach that subject, but Venom didn’t seem to mind, something shifting in the back of his mind as the stadium melted away, like a painting running in the hot sun, as an alien world stood before him. Images flashed in his mind of a red Symbiote, a thin, wiry figure of bloodied crimson and night black, resembling a flayed corpse, with claws the size of daggers, a fanged maw bent in a sadistic smile of glee. He felt his fight or flight instincts kick in just at the sight of this creature in a memory, doing everything he could to keep from screaming as it turned it's hate-filled, empty white eyes on him. It hissed with horrific laughter, as it slaughtered countless before him, being of various colors, species and armor types, no weapon, sword, blaster or hammer damaging the creature as it tore them limb from limb, tore out intestines, or, near the end, went among the injured and crippled to flay them alive. Before it could get any worse then that, the memory faded away, the alien world turning to dust all around him as the stadium's pristine, bloodless halls returned to sight.

“I am not eager to speak of Carnage, or my parent.” Venom hissed nervously, looking around, as though worried someone would ease-drop. “We are partners, and we share everything. My parent was worse, but weaker then I or Carnage. I did the universe a favor by eating him. And given what Shoto just said, it would be better for him to try something similar."

“So has any Symbiote not tried to murder their parents, or their kids?” Izuku asked, horrified. "Is there no other way?"

“It is the destiny of children and parents to try and usurp each other.” Venom growled, bitterness in his booming voice. “You should encourage this. Shoto will be stronger for defying his father. You could help him rise to the top that way, after he accepts his place beneath us that is.”

Izuku wasn’t sure if his Symbiote was trying to influence him or not, but part of him started to agree with the Klyntar. If Shoto wanted to defy his father, it didn’t seem wrong to stop him. But another part of him didn’t accept that. A larger part of him, in fact, wanted to try and somehow help him, but Izuku was no therapist, and wasn’t sure he should try and pry into the private life of another. If Shoto wanted help, he would seek it out.

Venom retreated into his body, as the two made their way back in silence, thinking over everything. He did not want Izuku to get distracted during the fights to come  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Back at the cafeteria, none of the students had seemed to have noticed Izuku, Shoto or Bakugou’s disappearance. Momo and Jirou began to make their way back to their table, before they were stopped by Denki and Mineta.

“You know, every girl has to do the cheerleading thing.” Mineta stated. 

Jiro gave him a disgruntled look. “Is this a perverted scheme of you two?”

“No, we heard Aizawa himself talking about it.” Denki said, holding up both hands. “You can ask him yourself if you want.”

The two looked at each other, before a shadow loomed over them, as both turned in surprise. They had seen the man from before, eating quietly on his own, and speaking into a phone, and passed on the strange long coat he wore, and strange metal braces along his shoes, he must’ve been a Pro-Hero. He looked down at them, his expression as still and hard as granite, as he narrowed his yellow-within orange eyes, like twin burning suns glaring down at them. He gave the pointed scales on his chin a single stroke, before speaking.

“Quite the lie you two invented.” He remarked, turning his head slightly to one side. “Since Aizawa told you, though, perhaps we can all go there and speak to him, right?”

“Aaah, no actually, it’s not a problem.” Mineta said quickly, shaking under the gigantic man’s iron gaze. “I must’ve misheard.”

“Mistakes happen.” The man said simply, cleaning his mouth with a paper towel, even as his gaze never left them.

He was about to turn to leave, when a voice caught his attention. “Uncle G?”

He turned in surprise, as a pink blur rushed past and tackled him into a hug. “Mina? My, it is has been a while?”

“You didn’t tell me you were coming here.” She said with glee. “Where’s Aunty M, or Angy?”

“Unfortunately it’s just me.” He said, a rare smile flashing across his face as he held her by the shoulders to get a better look. “Mothra’s away on business. Something about Mexican Nazis, cyborgs and a weird Stone Mask.”

“Wait, wait.” Momo said in surprise. “Your aunt and uncle are Monster-Heroes? Gojiro and Mothra?”

“Yep.” Mina said with a quick nod, before pointing to her horns. “Mom’s are horns, Aunt M’s are more antenna.”

All four looked at them in amazement, as Godzillo, placed his hands in his pockets, coat flapping gently in the wind behind like a cape. If he was part of upbeat Mina’s family, he had to have married in. It seemed unlikely he could be related to her at all. They still couldn't get over their surprise, as she continued talking to him, not all minding how ferocious and just plain dangerous he looked even in this human-like form.

“So what’s been happening to you? Fight any cool monsters lately?” Mina asked with barley contained excitement, stepping back slightly and jumping slightly in excitement.

“I got a confidential job out in the islands.” Godzillo remarked, looking slightly agitated. “Rodan’s in there now, covering for me.”

“I can’t believe you’re related to giant monster movie star.” Jirou said in amazement, still taken aback by the whole thing.

“Two. My other Uncle, my Mom’s bro, is an Eco-Terrorist/Vigilante.” Mina stated, as the others looked at her in shock. "Only tolerated cause he fights things worse then himself. When he's not blowing up oil companies and stuff that is."

Godzillo cringed for a moment, his stone-cold facade falling for a second as he remembered quite a few energy blasts that Eco-Terrorist had given him, before shrugging slightly and returning to his usual cold demeanor. “Don’t let the family bond distract you, I’m scouting for everyone. And I have to say, your whole class is impressive.”

Part of that may have been a lie. His eye was always on Izuku, due to that ability he had, but there was a bit of truth to it. He had been impressed with all of them. All the Classes had been impressive and determined, but it was Class-A that stood out the most to them.

‘It was either the villain attack or Aizawa’s teaching, but there’s a fire in all of em.’ He thought looking them all over, suppressing a small smile of pride for Mina and the rest. ‘They’ll go far.’

“I gotta go. Heroes aren’t supposed to be talking with the students in breaks until after the competition,” He explained, popping another hot pepper into his mouth. “You all did good. Ms. Yaoyoruzu, Mr. Kaminari, Mina, I’ll be excited to see how you and the rest of your classmates and such do.”

He nodded to them before turning on his heel and heading out, as the rest watched in surprise. Jirou was the first to speak, twirling her left Earphone jack absent-mindedly.

“He’s a little...cold ain’t he?” Jirou remarked, as they watched him leave, hands in his pockets.

“He seems like a tough baddass type, but he’s actually just bad with crowds.” Mina explained with a shrug. “He prefers to spend time studying ocean life and reading.”

“I couldn’t imagine him being the type.” Momo remarked, as he turned the left for the rest of the stadium, before she turned to Mina. “You called him Uncle, is he and your aunt…?”

“No, that’s just a rumor by some of his fangs.” She said with a grin, looking like she was trying to hold back a laugh. “Just don’t tell him that.”

Momo nodded to herself. It must’ve just be an honorary position then. It stick was odd to her, and most of the others, that Mina had spent any time with such a man though. He had the presence of something completely ancient, and the attitude that completely at odds with Mina’s bouncy, fun-filled persona. She looked at Mineta and Denki for a moment, before both she and Jirou’s faces went from relaxed and neutral, to angry.

“You two pervs tried to rope us into your schemes!” Jirou growled, her Ear Phone Jacks flying into their ears.

Everyone eating their food tried to ignore and look away from the two boys as their screams of horror filled the area. Godzillo, as he walked towards the bathrooms, merely smiled to himself. He knew what Rodan had tried to get into, that sex-crazed Fire-Turkey, but he never had the patience for it, especially given that he saw Mina as being practically his own. He came to the crowd of waiting fans and spectators, reporters and fans asking him a million questions a second, as he smiled and signed their merch, gave words of encouragement and support to those watching at home, as his thoughts went back to the kid everyone had seen, but no one wanted to talk about.

“What do you think of the students performing?” A reporter asked innocently. “A lot are saying two of them are too frightening to be heroes.”

“Bakugou and Midoriya?” Godzillo stated bluntly, as he crossed his arms in front of his chest, the crowd stiffening and falling completely silent at his words, as he glared at the camera. “One’s too ferocious, and one has a Scary Monster of a Qurik, that's what you're all saying, right, but look at who your talking to.”

Godzillo beat his chest twice with a fist, before pointing to his head with the other hand.

“It’s all in the heart, soul and mind,” He stated. “Appearance and power means nothing, so long as you got the spirit of a hero. And they have more then enough heroic spirit.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The hour seemed to fly by to most, as they were herded back into the stadium, most of the Students fine, except for Mineta now sporting several weeping bruises courtesy of Jirou and Momo giving him a piece of their mind, with Denki likewise looking just as worse for wear. Mineta, of course had no regrets in trying at least. While the American cheerleaders were a welcome sight for one as perverted as him, he was only peeved that he had failed in his plan.

‘I can believe a dinosaur tattled on us.’ He thought, shaking his head.

Present Mic took a swig of water before speaking again. “Ah! Now then, for those who couldn’t score, we’ll have recreational activities for you all, but for the 16 winners of the last competition, you’ll have something to truly catch the eye!”

He waited dramatically, as Aizawa sighed to himself at his partner’s hamminess and lust for attention.

“You’ll be engaged in one-on-one battles, all to reach the top!” Aizawa finally announced after a moment of silence to draw people to edge of their seat.

Venom practically purred with excitement, as Midoriya looked down at his fist for a moment, not sure what to expect. He had already gone all out twice during the fight, and doing it again was not something he wanted to do. He had wanted to hide Venom, but when push came to shove, they had unleashed themselves at the most desperate moment. He was worried he would to that, and end up hurting someone.

Venom had promised not to eat anyone’s brains, but that wasn’t exactly comforting words and all.

Midnight’s words interrupted his thoughts, as he looked up once her sharp voice rang out.

“The match-ups will be decided by picking lots.” She explained, holding up a box, with a mischievous smile. “Once that’ done, all that’s left is to prepare the fights.”

Ojiro raised his hand shakingly, everyone looking to him in surprise, their surprise increasing as he spoke his next words. “With respect to the competition and all, I’d like to drop out.”

“Ojiro, what are you doing, this is your chance to get attention!” Mina said in surprise, putting a hand on his shoulder.

“It’s just, I won, but I remember nothing about it.” He said, looking down in shame. “All I remember is winning. I think it was that guy’s Quirk.”

He pointed to the purple haired kid from back when the competition was announced. Everyone gave him odd, sideways glances as he simply turned his head away, trying perhaps a little too hard not to look guilty, and pass as normal.

“Ojiro, don’t let your pride do the talking for you.” Toru cautioned.

“This is about my pride though!” He replied, holding his head in his hands. “How can I in good conscious enter this competition with the rest of when I didn’t get here with my own skills and abilities?”

Shoda, a short, plumb kid from Class-B also spoke up. “I can’t remember anything either. I know it’s about skills, but I didn’t put any of mine to work, and this feels like I’m breaking the rules.”  
Present Mic was taken aback by what was before him, and turned to Aizawa for any advice the more cerebral, rational teacher would have to say, but he merely shrugged, not knowing himself how to proceed.

“We got ourselves a conundrum here.” He stated, still shocked. “Will our head judge Midnight please decide?”

She rubbed her chin slightly, before grinning to herself. “So Naive and green...”

She cracked her whip through the air. “I like it! Ojiro and Shoda are officially withdrawn. Members from Team Kendo will be put in their place!”

Kendo placed her hands on her hips, shaking her head slightly. “I don’t think we can accept that. We were frozen in place most of the match.”

She gestured towards Tetsutetsu, looking up at Midnight, unflinching. “We nominate Team Tetsutesu!”

The Chrome-haired boy was immediately taken back by this, looking at her with surprise and confusion. He wasn’t sure what was going on or what Kedno was planning. She merely gave a small smile to him.

“We’re not planning anything.” She said to him. “You just deserve this more.”

Midnight drew herself up, getting slightly annoyed with the distractions, despite liking the young, spritely energy.

“So Tetsutetsu and Shiozaki will be placed within the Fights.” She declared. “That brings us up to 16 fighters!”

The large screen displayed the names of the competitors and who would be going up against each other first. Midoriya looked up to the screen, shielding the sun form his eyes. His first match was against someone named Shinso. He thought over that name. It sounded familiar, the more he thought about it.

“Shinso. That’s gotta be...” He began, before someone came up behind up, Venom jerking him around immediately. 

“Izuku Midoriya, that’s you right?” The Purple-haired kid asked, looking at him with a distant, unfeeling gaze.

Midoriya opened his mouth to speak, before both Venom and Ojiro interrupted him, the latter placing his tail over Izuku’s mouth.

“Don’t answer him!” They both shouted in worry, as Izuku flinching from both of their voices.

Izuku withdrew from Shinso’s cold gaze, as the stadium began to clear out for the fun, harmless competition to come, as Cementoss and other workers began to prepare to fill the stadium with cement and shape it for the arena bout to come.

In that time, the future contestants choose to distract themselves with whatever ways and opportunities they could. Tokoyami withdrew himself onto a tree away from everyone else to gather his thoughts, just outside the stadium, as Todoroki went to the opposite end, sitting in silence to prepare himself. Iida drank up several of the fruit beverages and began to prepare himself for the fights to come, as Ojiro, Venom and Izuku discussed in private how to deal with Sinso. Whether it was trying to relax, or psyche themselves up, the path they took ultimately lead in the same direction.

After the recreational, fun activities were concluded, the worker crews brought in pumps and devices, pouring cement in, as the Pro-Hero Cementoss got to work shaping and twisting it to his will to work into a small, rectangle arena in the center of the stadium, and ready for the battles to come. It was large enough to fit on the center grand stage, giving the fighter plenty of room to fight and move around without getting to constricted.

As the crews completed their work, the competitors were gathered and told to prepare, with Izuku and Shinso being the first up. Izuku stood in the massive archway leading into the arena, readying himself for the fight to come. This was going to be difficult and dangerous, even if Shinso wasn’t a direct fighter like Todoroki or Bakugou. Venom sprouted from his shoulder.

“You overthink everything, as always.” He hissed. “Just don’t talk and let me handle everything.”

“Whenever I do that, you hurt people.” Izuku snapped in annoyance.

“I won’t put him in the hospital.” Venom said with a twisted, small smile.

“Behave yourself, or no tattor tots.” Izuku warned, pointing at the miniature head of the Symbiote.

Venom recoiled, his face twisting into a deep frown, as he shook slightly. “Sadist! Do you enjoy watching me suffer?”

“Behave and you’ll get your food.” Izuku warned, as they stepped out onto the field.

Izuku cracked the knuckles on one fist, before cracking the other as fires burned the corners of the arena. Venom was jumpy of course, but didn’t panic or try and do anything stupid, as he entered, eyes locked ahead.

“On one side is the rising star of Class-1A’s hero course, Izuku Midoriya!” Present Mic declared, the crowds ooh-ing and aah-ing. “And on the other, is the General Studies’ Course, Shinso Hitoshi!”

Present Mic waited as both stepped on, ready and rearing to go, before he continued. “The rules are simple. You must either get your opponent out of bounds, immobilize them, or get them to say ‘I give up!’ Then you win and go to the next round!”

“I give up huh? Get it Izuku Midoriya, this battle’s a test of our strengths of will and endurance.” Shinso declared, as the counter rang down. “If you have any vision for the future or your place in it, you won’t worry about how you get there, just to reach that position.”

Midoriya looked at him in confusion, as Present Mic took a deep breath, and roared to the whole stadium. “Ready?! Open the gates and begin!”

“Don’t be like that stupid monkey whining about his pride.” Shinso stated with annoyance, rolling his eyes. “Only a dumbass with no hope for being a hero would throw away this chance.”

Izuku’s eyes widened and focused in rage, as his lip curled back. Venom issued mental warnings for him to calm down. Izuku began to run at him, as he opened his mouth.

“What did you say?!” He shouted, and not, one second after the words had left his mouth, a static charge, like when someone rubs their feet against the carpet, bolted up his body.

He stopped immediately and froze in place, as Venom squirmed around in his body, trying to get him to move or control his body. Ojiro ran his hands through his hair as he watched in horror.

“Damn it Midoriya, I warned you!” He shouted in worry. “You went and did what I told you not to do!”

“The fight’s already started, and Midoriya isn’t even moving?” Present Mic stated, hands pressed against the sides of his face. “Can’t he show some spirit, try a little?”

“This is my win.” Shinso muttered to himself, as he watched Izuku for a second, making sure his body was still, before speaking louder.

Izuku’s body didn’t move, despite both his trying to control his body like normal, and Venom hissing and growling within his mind and body to resist and try and move towards Shinso, so they could beat the stuffing out of him. But, try as he might, Izuku found his own body had turned against him. He tried everything, but he was at Shinso’s mercy.

He merely grinned at him, as his face couldn’t even change expressions. He was at Shinso’s complete mercy. The battles had barely started, and already, he was about to lose, and lose horribly. Godzillo and All Might, from different positions in the stadium watched with confused and worried expressions, as the crowd fell silent, no one sure where this was going to go now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't sure how long I should make this, but I figured I could add more meat to the chapters after this one. I originally had plans to set up an organization studying Symbiotes and all under Godzillo's watch, but I thought that would distract from Midoriya's story, and including elements of the Godzilla franchise was already making this section a little top heavy. I actually didn't plan for that. But I figured Izuku still needed a teacher figure, and with All Might and he being more confidants in secrets, someone had to fill the gap. And if he was going to be play a big role, I'd need to include some more elements, though it will remain more focused on MHA and Venom/Marvel aspects then the Godzilla franchise.
> 
> I did however, go through with one idea I really really liked. The user Chapelseed suggested I make Mothra Mina's aunt, and I couldn't resist combining Best Girl with probably one of my big favs in the Godzilla franchise.


	11. The Ramp Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The competition narrows as the best of the best rise to the top, and others watched from afar as the the young heroes show their stuff.

Izuku stood rod stiff in the center of the arena, eyes blank and glazed over, as Venom panicked within his mind. For a host to suddenly stop like this usually meant bad things for the Symbiote. He moved throughout Izuku’s body, trying to get a reaction form him, or to break the spell Shinso had put on him, but nothing was working. It was as though his host had become a complete statue. He growled to himself, wondering how to break it.

“Ojiro had stated that physical contact had broken the mental control.” Venom muttered to himself, speaking as though Izuku could still respond. “But I’m always in contact with you. Is it a skin thing, or humans need to contact other humans?”

Izuku’s thoughts were a desperate mash-up, the kid hardly able to focus as he tried to get back control over his body. It felt like his mind and body had a fog placed on it, and, with Venom so connected, was utterly disturbing to the Symbiote. He could see what was happening to his host, but couldn’t knock the control out. If it was drugs, he could filter them out and alter the hormonal and chemical balances in Izuku’s body, but something like a Quirk was still beyond his abilities.

Shinso grinned at Izuku, hands still in his pockets as he watched. “Izuku, you really are lucky to be so blessed. Walk off out of bounds of the arena.”

Izuku, without a moment to waste, turned on his heel and began to walk towards the edge without compliant. Present Mic gasped dramatically, pressing his hands against his cheeks.

“What is this? Midoriya’s doing exactly what he’s told like a drone!” He shouted in shock. “How could the first fight end like this?”

As Midoriya trudged forward, Aizawa took out two papers, reading them over. “I have their scores right here.”

“Good Catch.” Remarked Present Mic.

“This just proves what I’ve said all along,” He muttered in annoyance. “The Entrance Exams are completely irrational.”

As Izuku marched ahead, beyond his own control, Aizawa continued. “Midoriya’s power gives him incredible strength, speed and ability, but Shinso’s is powerful as well. The fact they were judged the same metric is a mistake in my eyes.”

Venom finally decided, as they drew closer and closer to the edge, to take matters in his own hands, in a more direct way. “I’m sorry Izuku, I know you don’t like me taking direct control.”

Blackish tar coated his feet, adhering to the ground, as Venom took control of his leg and hip muscles and tendons, stopping him in his tracks despite Izuku’s continued, numb resistance. He then seeped into the insides of Izuku’s two left fingers, snapping them backwards until the bone snapped and stabbed outwards. Izuku yelled in pain, grabbing his hand in agony, as it was already healing, Venom working quickly to undo the damage he had done.

“What are you doing, walk to the edge.” Shinso commanded, as Izuku turned, both his arms coated in Venom’s mass, enlarged and more powerful then before.

Shinso lurched back slightly in surprise, as Present Mic shouted in surprise.

“Has Midoriya found a way to escape Shinso?!” He announced, fists shaking as he watched enraptured.

Ochako and Iida cheered from the stands, as the rest of the crowds joined, Shinso shaking slightly from the turn that may have come against him. Izuku turned and faced Shinso, his eyes turning black as Venom took over control of his body. Despite now being in the back seat again, Izuku was almost elated to have Venom in control. The fog that had taken over his mind and body vanished, as the familiar cold, alien but comforting presence of his Symbiote took over most of his bodily movements and reactions.

“Hey, say something, answer me!” Shinso demanded, growing irritated, his voice tinged with fear as well. “How did you break my control?”

Venom practically fastened Izuku’s jaws shut, but he wouldn’t need to do that. Midoriya had learned all too well not to answer those questions, but his Symbiote would rather be safe then sorry.

“So, your Quirk took control of your body without you saying so?” Shinso wondered aloud. “I’m almost jealous, to have a power like that must be something else.”

Venom, after shifting Izuku’ weight between his two legs, set out, and charged forward, slowly at first, before Venom got the hang of things and shook off the last of the fog in Izuku’s body, and picked up speed.

“To have a power like that, be born with something so amazing, must be great!” Shinso shouted, his calm demeanor falling, as he glared at the charging Izuku. “To be able to reach your goals, while the rest of us are left behind!”

Izuku felt guilt and sympathy building up in him, but kept his mouth shut. Even Venom, though still eager to bash his lights out, also couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. On his world, he knew what it was like to be left behind, be it by Riot and his team, or by some other group. But he still had to win, for Midoriya’s sake.

Midoriya’s right arm lashed outwards, two thick, slime-covered strands of biomass flying outwards and latching onto Shinso’s feet, as Venom brought he and his host closer to fight. As he got closer, Shinso swung a punch into Izuku’s face, who ignored the strike almost as thought it was a fly landing on him, and grabbed him by the shoulder, forearm braced against his chest, as he restrained his other arm with another tendril of biomass, calling back the two at Shinso’s feet, and pushing backwards.

Shinso tried to resist, punching him in the face twice, but his strength and resistance wasn’t much to stop Midoriya’s push forward. He tried to raise his knee into Izukus gut, only getting a soft, annoyed huff from him, as Venom shielded his body from the strikes, before receding back into Izuku’s internal organs. Shinso, desperate to win as they reached the edge, threw another punch, only for Izuku to grab it with his left, spun him around, and shoulder tossed him into the out of bounds section.

Izuku staggered slightly, as Venom’s mass began to retreat back into his body again.

“Shinso is out!” Midnight stated, throwing the flag up towards Shinso’s side of the ring.

“Midoriya wins!” Present Mic announced. “What a strong start to the fights!”

Shinso sat on the ground, eyes shut tight, as he groaned to himself in shame. His expression was one full of regret, of someone who had lost yet another chance to win or get around. Izuku watched him for a moment, wanting to explain and talk to him about how amazing his Quirk was, that he was truly a great hero in the making, but couldn’t do any of that. He merely rubbed the bruise on his cheek, as Venom sent parts of himself upwards to fix and return his skin to normal again.

Venom had retreated into Izuku’s body, as the two were brought into the center, as Midnight flashed the flag for victory towards Izuku, as the crowds cheered and clapped for them both. Shinso looked drained and deeply saddened. Izuku bowed to him, as Shinso nodded to him, as he turned and moved to leave the arena in shame. 

“Shinso, why did you want to be a hero?” Izuku asked, before he could leave.

He stopped in his tracks, sighing to himself. “You can’t help wanting to be what you naturally admire.”

‘Just like me, before I found you.’ Izuku thought to Venom, as the Symbiote shifted slightly in agreement. ‘At least I found you. Him though...’

“He’s gifted. He doesn’t need one of my kinds.” Venom hissed slightly. “He shouldn’t give up.”

He stopped as a number of kids gathered over the archway leading out from arena. He looked up at them in surprise, his eyes growing misty, as his hand trembled at his side slightly.

“You had us on the edge of our seats man!” One shouted.

“You’re the shinning star of our class, my man!” Another stated with a smile.

Above them, numerous Pro-Heroes were speaking and babbling amongst themselves over the results, many of them taken aback and amazed by the show Shinso had managed to put on. Many were wondering what an amazing student like he was doing in the General Studies course, while others were even speaking in jealousy of his Quirk and it’s capabilities. One of the Pros, a lady dressed in bright, gaudy cloths, resembling a medieval court jester stood up from the stands and called down to him.

“Hey kid, that Quirk is amazing!” She called to him with a bright smile. “Keep working and you’ll be a hero like no other!”

Shinso wiped away tears from his eyes, as Izuku watched him in surprise, and admiration. He had seemed to in control and stoic, so to see him get so emotional was shocking for Izuku. But he understood why.

“They’ll be looking at the results for this when deciding transfers.” Shinso remarked, taking a shaky breath. “I may have lost here, but I won’t give up! I’ll become a greater hero then you and your class, understand?”

Izuku nodded for a moment, before speaking again. “You can do it.”

His body stopped and froze in place, his body stiffening for a second. Shinso turned his head slightly, with a mischievous grin.

“The match is over! What is the meaning of this?” Venom hissed within Izuku’s mind.

“I could just mess with you now, but I’m not interested in that sort of thing.” Shinso said. “Just promise you won’t lose pathetically, alright?”

Izuku made his way to the Nurse’s office, called there by Recovery Girl. While his injuries weren’t serious, and had been healed and sealed up by Venom, she wanted to make sure he was doing alright and Venom wasn’t causing any mayhem in his body. He didn’t mind, just wanting to get a break and make sure she didn’t have a reason to distrust him or Venom. It would take a while for her to check up on his body and vitals, as the next battle began to be prepared for Shoto and Sero.

As Izuku was being checked up on, Shoto Todoroki began to make his way to the stadium. He came to a stop, glaring slightly as his usual infallible expression turned slightly sour. His father stood in the hallway in his way, arms crossed as he leaned against the wall.

“Get out of my way.” Shoto snapped.

“You disappoint me Shoto.” Endeavor remarked. “You could’ve easily won both Cavalry battle and the Foot race with my fire.”

He walked past him, saying nothing and barley reacting, as Endeavor continued, his determined glaring burning into the back of Shoto’s head.

“You need to stop this petulant tantrum and accept your destiny to surpass All Might.” Endeavor barked, growing irritable. “You’re greater then your Brothers and Sister, my finest creation.”

“That’s all you got to say?” Shoto replied, looking back over his shoulder, before continuing onwards. “I will never use your Quirk. I’ll win this with mom’s power alone.”

Endeavor shook his head, narrowing his eyes. “You’ll reach your limit sooner or later. You can’t continue this forever.”

Endeavor could not see his face, but Shoto’s expression was almost pure, murderous, focused rage, using all his energy to keep from showing any reaction in his shoulders or hands to his father, merely keeping himself forward, moving away from him. He didn’t need or want his advise. He was going to win this battle and every battle with only the ice at his fingertips.

Endeavor, meanwhile, wouldn’t push the issue any further then he always did. He could chide Shoto for his stubbornness, but sooner or later, he would grow out of it. Once he was ready, once he realized what needed to be done, he would be ready to be shaped into the perfect hero. Until then, let him have his little rebellious phase. He would grow out of it eventually.

Shoto stepped out onto the field, where Seto was waiting for him, stretching and preparing his limbs, as he smiled confidently. Shoto scowled outwards, his face unfeeling and unflinching. The stands were silent and excited, everyone holding as the hype began to reach a fever pitch. The question remained. What could Endeavor’s boy do against others in his class?

Izuku still hadn’t returned, worrying Iida and Uraraka, but they tried to just focus on the fight. Izuku’s Quirk was weird and almost otherworldly, so it would most likely be just fine to let Recovery Girl handle the situation, and focus on the big fights to come.

“In this battle, the first one up, is the great of the greats, even if he is a bit average looking,” Present Mic announced. “It’s Sero Hanta!”

“Ouch.” Sero muttered with a sideways grin.

“Next up, is the Best of the Best! Strongest of the strong! Shoto Todoroki!” Mic continued, as Shoto merely looked at the ground, uncaring.

The crowds were deathly silent, uncomfortable and warded out by his attitude, as Godzillo crossed his arms in front of his mighty chest, looking at him sideways. Something was off. He could see it in his body language and attitude. It was making something in the back of his mind tingle ever so slightly, as he prepared for the fights to commence.

Sero stretched his arms, sighing slightly to himself. “Y’know, I don’t feel much like winning.”

He snapped forward, glaring at Todoroki, as he stretched his arms forward. “But I didn’t come here to lose either!”

The long strands of tape flew out of his arms, trying to wrap around and encircle Shoto, as side stepped and rolled just out of the reach of Sero’s attack, before Sero simply re-aimed and snapped his tape around again, this time wrapping around Shoto’s arms and upper-body. He glared back at Sero, eyes livid, absolutely enraged at him, as Sero drew back slightly, stopping for a second at the sure sight of Shoto’s rage.

“Apologies.” Was all Sero thought he heard, as Shoto’s right side flashed, and in a second, a massive column of ice exploded to life from his foot.

In the blink of an eye, before anyone could react, a column of ice, a quarter of the size of the stadium had exploded from Shoto’s foot and enveloped Sero, and almost collided with the stands and stadium wall behind Sero. Even Cementoss hadn’t had time to erect any walls or defenses to stop the ice, and it was only Shoto immediately stopping his attack that kept the ice from enveloping or simply smashing through the stadium and the people in it’s way.

Every hero reacted immediately, standing and ready to act the moment the ice came within a fraction of an inch of the people. Godzillo’s eyes were distant and slightly terrified for once, as he felt the cold winds of the ice hit his face, arms partially transforming into the usual reptilian claws, his fangs lengthening slightly. His eyes were unfocused, starring off, his mind elsewhere. He stood there for a moment, before stiffly sitting back down. The others looked at him strangely out of the corners of their eyes but none said a word.

In the booth, the two announcers looked in shock at the massive ice wall before them, Present Mic out of his chair and practically jamming his face into the glass to see it, both absolutely speechless by it.

Sero struggled for a moment, as Shoto shrugged slightly, the frozen-solid tape strands shattering with ease. Midnight stood stiffly, half her body frozen as well, she herself unable to move, and slightly regretting how thin the material of her costume was.

“Sero, can you move?” She asked, shivering slightly.

“Y...You’re joking? Right?” He asked, trying to turn his head to look at her. “I can’t even move.”

“Shoto wins.” Midnight said stiffly, still struggling to move.

Todoroki approached the ice mountain he had created in seconds, pressing his right arm against it, expression still stoic.

“Apologies, I let some personal issues get to me.” He remarked, as heat built up in his body, the ice melting and turning to steam as the structure began to break down.

Back at the Medical Station, Venom had reacted strangely to Shinso’s abilities. At first Izuku didn’t see anything wrong, and Recovery Girl didn’t detect any irregularities in his organ systems and body mass at first, Venom seemingly able to maintain his and Izuku’s bodies despite the pressure, thanks to some of Izuku’s emergency chocolate rations he was allowed to have to keep Venom stable and from dissolving and rotting his organs away.

As she finished checking all his vitals, she turned to him and gave him a thumbs up. “Alright, activate Venom in total.”

Izuku did so, sending Venom a mental command, as the blackened mass overtook his body, becoming the massive, semi-reptilian creature everyone was used to. His over-sized tongue licked across his fangs and ‘lips’, as he hunched slightly to avoid hitting the ceiling.

“Is it all good?” Venom asked, trying to keep his voice done to avoid scaring her too much.

Recovery Girl, of course, had been a doctor and seen Quirks that looked just as horrifying or more then Veom. The Old Women merely looked at him almost bored.

“Just wait. I can’t instantly scan the body, I don’t have that Quirk.” Recovery Girl muttered, as the medical devices wired and powered up. Thanks to her specifications, the devices had been built for low sound resonance or vibration, so Venom wouldn’t panic.

The sound was low and barley even effected Venom or his central systems. He calmly waited, before sparks of energy lite up form his body, Venom stiffening as Izuku reeled back in surprise, but was held in place by Venom’s control of his body.

“Venom, you ok, what’s wrong?” Izuku asked, only to be meet with silence by the Symbiote.

He looked around through Venom’s eyes, or tried to, given the Symbiote was completely silent and stiff, unmoving despite Izuku’s struggles to move. Izuku could feel panic welling up in his chest. He wanted to cry out, to do something.

He closed his eyes, trying as hard as he could to struggle against his Symbiote’s locked down body, when a loud crack, like muscle tissue and bones being snapped echoed in his mind. He opened his eyes, energy sparking and fizzling off Venom’s body and in front of him, as the entire world shattered and broke away, collapsing in on itself as if time and the entire world had erased in one crushing motion. A large red spiral slowly burned in front of them, at first barely visible, until it finally began to pick up power, burning bright and brighter until it took up Izuku and Venom’s field of vision entirely.

Flashing before them in rapid fire fashion, like a slide show gone crazy, were images of what Izuku assumed were the past. Jungle worlds, volcanoes, Symbiotes of various colors like Venom fighting across multiple worlds, countless alien and otherworldly foes. Above the stars, a figure of pure death and havoc watched, three winding necks leading into three large maws of eternal hunger, 9 eyes of pure evil.

Above that still, were several hundred creatures, being of blood-red or night-black, resembling great dragons of European myth and legend, but with eyes and fangs like Venom’s own. Izuku felt his breath catch in his throat, at the sight of it all, before it all suddenly shattered and broke away before he could even process everything that was happening.

Venom seemed to have come back to his senses or released him somehow, as Venom found himself reaching up to his head to rub his hair back, feeling his body shake slightly.

“Alright, everything checks out, you’re free to leave,” Recovery Girl remarked, sipping from a bottle of water, before noticing Izuku’s nervous, twitching disposition. “Are you alright? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

Izuku was rendered speechless for a moment, wondering how she hadn’t seen that, before quickly realizing, that, given it only happened with Venom and seem Symbiote-themed, it wasn’t going to be seen or felt by outsiders. Quickly, he regained his composure, despite still looking clammy and pale.

“No, nothing ma’am. It’s all good,” He said nervously. “If...everything you’re doing is ok?”

“Yes, everything checks out. Vitals are good.” She said, still eyeing him suspiciously. Something was off, but she didn’t want to push it. “I’m sorry I kept you here. I just wanted to make sure your Quirk wasn’t using you up.”

“Those mini chocolate bars you recommended did the trick.” Izuku said with a nervous smile, giving her a thumbs up.

“Good. You can leave, say hello to your friends, and good luck.” She remarked, as Izuku waved, and left the room quickly.

He moved as quickly as he could without attracting undue attention. He moved past several orderlies and other workers, before turning into the halls that would lead into the stadium and the gymnasium. Once he believed he was alone, he spoke aloud, hoping no one would pass by to see him.

“Venom, Venom, talk to me, what the heck was that?” Izuku asked, trying to sound calm and relaxed, despite whatever it was he just saw not putting him to ease at all. After he didn’t speak, Izuku repeated his terrified demands. “Venom, I can’t help if you don’t speak.”

“That was an ancestral memory! It shouldn’t possible! None of this is possible!” He yelled into Izuku’s mind in a panic.

“Slow down, what are you talking about?”

“It was...a memory of our species.” Venom explained. “Since our biology is simpler then yours or another, memories can be past from Symbiote to Symbiote. We can, in theory, recall everything from our first evolution to now.”

“Why is this a problem?” Izuku asked.

“Memories can replaced as our personality asserts itself and we mature and take on our hosts.” Venom explained. “I’ve had so many hosts, any memories passed from my parent are gone or faded out by now.”

“Then what was all of that?” Izuku questioned, as they made their way to the stands.

“That’s the thing, that shouldn’t have happened.” Venom hissed in terror. “Our Legends state that the Dark God, Knull forged us, and the first three symbiotes served as his loyal generals and followers. Knull is a legend, he cannot be real.”

“Maybe that was a religious ritual you were remembering.” Izuku suggested.

“No, it matched the description of Knull’s campaigns!” Venom stated sternly. “If it was a ritual, I would’ve seen ancient Klyantar enacting rituals and sacrifices, not Knull itself, and his Symbiote dragons.”

Izuku wanted to ask what caused it, half of what Venom was talking about, and many more things, but they were getting closer to the actual stands and all right now, and he didn’t want people to think he was talking to himself, or for Venom to come out in the middle of the crowds, especially with some much loud noise to harm him and his body.

“It must be that Shinso. His abilities effect the mind.” Venom remarked, as though replying to Izuku’s question. “How could he have caused such an awakening?”

Izuku wouldn’t say for certain, simply walking back into the stands, and rejoining his friends. Venom had retreated into his mind to contemplate everything that had happened, his presence smaller and less pronounced then usual. Izuku was almost worried about him leaving him, but the Symbiote was still there in the back of his mind, meditating and thinking over everything on it’s own. Izuku wouldn’t lie to himself. He had been so used to having Venom’s voice in his head, speaking and arguing with him, even mocking and degrading him sometimes, that he would’ve gone crazy without the Symbiote being there with him.

He smiled to his classmates, slightly worried about Venom’s behavior after the mental intrusion, but never the less got to catch the last match, of Kaminari getting his brain zapped by his own powers, as a Class-1B girl, entangled him completely in her vines. Shiozaka, Midoriya believed her name was. Venom shuddered slightly in the back of his mind. Izuku shared the sentiment wordlessly. Denki kept overdoing his powers, and Izuku was afraid he was using up braincells every time. Even Venom seemed disturbed by the display of powers, drawn from his seclusion to observe the fights.

He sat beside Uraraka, wanting to take notes about the fight, but didn’t have time to take out his notepad or pencil before it was over. He didn’t get to see anything about the fight to really get a feel for their powers or abilities either. He’d have to wait til later.

“You’re kinda serious.” Uraraka said nervously, as if she wasn’t sure how to start a conversation. “So, was everything all good with Recovery Girl?”

Izuku knew she couldn’t begin to understand anything he was dealing with. Some part of him wanted to tell her, reach out for her support, but he bite that idea down. He couldn’t begin to explain it, and would she turn him in? He didn’t think so, but Venom was still hesitant, despite seemingly liking her.

“It was fine, just making sure Venom didn’t eat anything too important.” He explained nervously. “I just wish I had my notes. I’d like to write down everyone’ strength and weaknesses.”

“Oh, really?” Ochako asked, sounding curious.

“It’s a habit of mine.” Izuku explained. “I like to be ready for anything.”

Ochako gave a small, blushing smile. “You’re certainly something else Izuku.”

“So whose next?” Venom demanded, manifesting and squirming out from Izuku’s shoulder. “I’m getting bored waiting for the next battle.”

Izuku was confused about Venom’s sudden appearance, but from what he could detect from his mind connecting to Izuku’s, Venom seemed to want to forget whatever the two had seen, and just focus on the fights. Izuku couldn’t blame him, whatever they had seen had been mind-bending, but it seemed to terrify Venom far more then it had Izuku. Perhaps it was more real for Venom then he, Izuku couldn’t say for sure.

“Well, the next one is Iida and that Hatsume girl.” Ochako said, touching her chin slightly. “That’s a strange mash-up. I wonder how that will turn out?”

Venom wanted to make a remark about that no matter who won, the two of them would crush anyone that stood in their way, but remembered Izuku considered Ochako and Iida friends. Trying to crush or annihilate them in battle would’ve gone against his host’s wishes and upset him. Personally, though he hide such ideals from Izuku, he hoped it was either Todoroki or Bakugou that won. Knocking each of them down a peg would’ve filled Venom with such intense joy. Izuku seemed more hesitant, but Venom hoped that would change sooner or later.

The two watched, as Iida and Mei came onto the field, each dressed in the gym uniform, and their various equipment and pieces placed over their bodies, all of them built by Hatsume obviously. Midnight looked at them uncertainty, before glancing up to Aizawa and Present Mic, before looking back at Tenya and Hatsume.

“You know, you have to sign up with the judges and such before the match to get support items and use them in this.” Midnight stated, sounding slightly awkward. “In case it will cause any obstacles.”

“I saw Aoyama had his belt, so I thought I would be allowed.” Iida announced.

“Because he planned ahead.” Midnight stated with a small sigh. Iida was a little much, even for her.

“I apologize profusely for any trouble.” Iida said with a bow. “But she came to before the match with an offer, to use her equipment to even out the battle to come, and I couldn’t be so small as to insult her mettle!”

“I mean, if the judges will allow it.” Midnight replied, glancing to the announcer’s box.

“As long as both share the same mind about it, I guess it’s fine.” Aizawa muttered, rolling his eyes.

“Oh no, I don’t think Iida knows what he got into...” Izuku remarked. Venom went back into his body, disappearing away, even as he nodded slightly in agreement. This felt like deception.

“Start!” The announcer roared, as the crowd cheered in excitement despite the slow start.

Iida ran straight at Mei without hesitation. He was not going to hesitate or stop for a moment. This foe of his wanted a fair fight, and he would give it to her, no holding back. Mei stood there, hands on her hips, confidently smiling to the crowd.

“So you are covering a lot of ground aren’t ya, Tenya?” She yelled to the crowd, her voice projected across the arena.

Iida lurched back in surprise. It was easier to get a running start, and the microphone she had was also surprising, coming to think of it, but he didn’t slow down, continuing with his charge forward. He had to finish this, the honor of his family relied on it.

“The devices on your legs measure and record your muscle contractions and movements,” She explained to the crowds. “Allowing for easier movement and the ability to get up to speed much faster then without.”

As he drew closer, she clicked a button within her hand, robotic pumps hissing and clicking to life, before extending out and allowing her to easily dodge his charge, the device shooting up into the air, and pushing her to the left.

“Dodging is a thing of the past with my device,” She declared. “I can, with the touch of a button, perfectly dodge any attack.”

She activated her Quirk, zooming in quickly to spot which area of the stands the business and corporate types were seated, the big ticket makers that would have to the most interest in her tools and creations. She grinned wildly. They were hooked.

Everyone watched as the cat and mouse game, this game of tag, continued onwards for five more minutes, Iida unable to catch her ever, Mei simply using more and more of her gear to dodge and showcase all of her technological marvels. Aizawa sighed as it continued on, shaking his head to himself, Present Mic looking on in surprise.

“She’s a born saleswomen.” He muttered in amazement.

Finally, she seemed satisfied with all her efforts, and stepped out of the ring, disqualifying herself entirely, but satisfied non the less with her sales work. As far as she could tell, all of Japan, if not the companies across the globe, would know her work and be begging to get their hands on her babies.

Even if Iida was angrily screaming after her over the deception, it mattered little. The victory, in her mind, belonged to her. Iida was left yelling in impotent rage over the deception, but there was little he could against his treatment. Izuku watched, uncertain of whether to be impressed by Iida’s victory, or feel sorry that he got roped into what was essentially a sales pitch rather then an actual battle. He was so focused on the stadium, he didn’t noticed Uraraka standing up to leave.

“I need to get to the prep room.” She remarked, looking uncertain and unsure of herself.

Izuku wanted to say something, but found a lump forming in his throat, not even sure how to help her, or what to say. It was obvious she was nervous about the fight with Bakugou, but what to say to get her spirits up? He watched her leave, still trying to come up with something to say.

“Are you always this foolish?” Venom hissed, practically in his ear.

‘What do you mean?’ He thought in surprise.

“You like her, correct?” Venom stated.

‘Yes, as a friend.’ He thought quickly.

“No need to hide your feelings, I’m inside your head.” Venom stated. “Your pulse quickens when you see her, you blush like freshly spilled blood when she draws near, and your dreams, so intimate...”

“Ok Venom.” Izuku said aloud, maybe a little too loud, as the others turned to look at him strangely, before he smiled sheepishly, and hide behind his hand. 

“The point is, you should help her, with battle strategies.” Venom suggested. “Gods above know you can’t confess anything to save your life, but giving her a leg up over Katsuki would be helpful, yes?”

‘I guess you’re right.’ Izuku thought with a confident nod, before glancing over at Kacchan. ‘She’s going to need all the help she can get.’

“And she might be appreciative.” Venom said with a joyful growl. “A thank you, a kiss, maybe even a mating ritual...”

“Venom!” Izuku shouted again, turning bright red.

“Let’s just wait and see.” Venom replied with a quiet chuckle to himself.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The battles continued on, as Uraraka sat by herself in the Prep Room. Mina and Aoyama were battling it out, with Momo and Tokoyami up next, but she was more concerned about figuring out how to win and truly show her abilities, and still not get murdered by what was possibly the most aggressive and overwhelming figure in their entire class.

Iida meanwhile, had cooled off his mufflers, and finished up his drinking and stretching to cool off and let his legs rest for the next minutes until his second battle began. In that time, he went on the search for Uraraka. Izuku, on his way to their first prep room, had stated she had disappeared to prepare for the fight. Iida couldn’t blame her. Even as someone more trained in the art of heroics and direct combat, he would be intimidated having to face what was essentially a storm system with explosive powers.

He made his way, following the directions of one of the staff to Prep Room 4, and opened the door.

“Urara...” He began, before lurching back in surprise. “...ka? Are you alright?”

She glared up at him, eyebrow furrowed, eyes focused like she was in the middle of a fist fight with All Might himself and couldn’t afford to lose concentration. “Huh?”

“Your...face.” He managed, not wanting to be rude.”

“Oh, sorry, I’ve been thinking a lot about this fight.” She said, expression softening.

“I see.” He said with a nod.

“Uraraka, there you are!” Deku suddenly stated, as Iida jumped slightly at the sudden appearance of the green-haired boy in surprise.

Uraraka looked up in surprise from her seat. “Shouldn’t you be watching the matches?”

“The last two finished early, and now it’s just Kirishima and that Class-1B guy duking it out.” Izuku explained. “So I figured I’d slip off to help you.”

Two black tentacles extended and turned away from his back, revealing his beat up, but trusty Quirk Notebook. The two tentacles swiped about and rested the writing pad into Izuku’s hands.

“So Venom suggested I help you out, since you’ve done a lot for me.” Izuku stated, holding it up for her to see. “I made a bunch of quick, on the fly-notes on your and his Quirk, and what you can do to win.”

“That is most fortunate for you, Izuku has come through again!” Iida remarked, chopping the air excitedly.

Uraraka sat for a moment, looking closely at the desk, before looking up at the two. “Thanks Deku, but, it’s fine. You don’t need to do that.”

Izuku and Iida looked at her in surprise, before she scratched the back of her head. “I thought about this a lot, and I think you’re amazing Deku, but I have to do this on my own.”

“I thought if we worked together, that it would be for the best, but I think Iida had the best attitude.” Uraraka admitted. “I need to be able to win this on my own, to challenge you and the others, without having to rely on someone else.”

“I...see.” Izuku said finally with a nod. “Good luck out there.”  
She stood up, and began to make her way out, before turning to the two, and giving them a thumbs up. “I’ll see you in the finals.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Earlier  
Tokoyami watched Yaoyoruzu intently, the two readied and prepared for the fight to come. He couldn’t slow for a one moment. He summoned Dark Shadow from his chest, the dark spirit creature sprouting from him and shooting out immediately. The faster he finished her off, the better in the long run were his chances. Dark Shadow zipped across the field, almost in the blink of an eye, lashing out with a clawed hand, only for Momo to instantly sprout a shield from her arm and block the attack. She began to step forward, smiling confidently again. She took a half-step forward, before Dark Shadow lashed out again, trying to knock her out before the fight could begin in earnest.

He knew that in close combat he would be almost helpless against even Yaoyoruzu. She wasn’t exactly a powerhouse, but she would have the abilities and tools to more then compensate. He pressed the attack again, pushing against her defenses with Dark Shadow’s claws and fists, driving her back again and again. 

As she skidded across the line, Dark Shadow withdrew, as she created a melee weapon to finally confront him and counter. She seemed confused and startled by Tokoyami’s sudden withdrawal from the battle, until the buzzer rang loudly.

“Momo is out of the ring!” Midnight declared. “Tokoyami is the winner!”

“I...lost?” Momo asked, still utterly shocked and confused.

Tokoyami felt sorry for her, but didn’t say anything, merely waiting at the center for her to get back and shake her hand and all. He wasn’t the best at talking, so trying to council her probably wouldn’t turn out well, but, after everything, he was thankful he had won so easily. He still was defenseless in close quarters when Dark Shadow didn’t have the range to move around and strike from a distance. He walked back to the stands, hands in his pockets, 

‘Izuku makes Venom appear around and over his body, like a suit.’ Tokoyami thought, deeply analyzing his fight. ‘I wonder if I should start doing something akin to that.’

How to do it was a major question to consider, but he would have to leave now. Kirishima and Tetsutesu were getting ready to fight it out, but perhaps later he could seek out Izuku and see about learning how to apply Dark Shadow in a new way. Of course, he’d have to ask him later, right now, he was going to win this with his own power and resolve, and rely on himself for the moment.

Several matches later, and Kirishima and Tetsutetsu’s unconscious bodies had been dragged off the field, having punch and clobbered each other to the ground until neither could stand and fight. Even Venom was impressed by their dogged determination and fighting spirit.

Now, it was Ochako and Bakugou’s turn, the two walking up to the center arena as the Present Mic hyped them both up. The crowd cheered in excitement for the fight to come. Izuku felt his nerves run wild, as his arms twitched with the jitters.

‘Good luck Uraraka.’ Izuku thought, half in prayer.

Half way across Japan, was one of many meatpacking plants, where cows, hogs and other animals were gathered, butchered, chopped up and prepared for preservation and shipment around the world. The workers, all sweaty, tired, and many heavy set and beefy themselves, gathered around their old, beat-up and dependable TV to watch the fights to come. Bets, beers and jeering yells were already flying, as a sinister figure sat high in the rafters above them, watching the screen intently from it’s shadowy perch.

It was a tall figure, resembling an emaciated corpse, but covered in yellow and spots of red throughout it’s arms, legs and body, with a blackened face, and fang-filled maw, thin white eyes glaring out from the darkness. Clutched tightly in one slime-covered claw was the half eaten body of a lamb, the creature’s fanged maw chewing a few times, before swallowing the fresh meat. Blood dripped from it’s claws and teeth, as it let out a low hiss. Hair, matching the color and texture of it’s body, draped from the top of it’s body, mattered and thick, as it watched the fights with interest.

The creature watched the screen intently, as the meat-packers began cheering on the fights. It was lowly, watching children fight and placing bets on it, but the creature wasn’t interested in the lowly creatures and their petty attempts to squeeze money from each other. It was interested in the two that gathered on the field to begin their fight.

It’s fanged face bent into a fleshy grin, as it whispered the name to itself. This one had taken it’s interest. It was on the look out for a new host. One far younger, stronger and more capable of bonding fully with each other.

“Och...ako…..Ura...raka...” It managed through its bloodied fangs, before taking another horrific crunching bite from it’s victim. The other two did not interest her, possibly not compatible with her bonding. But this one...this one interested it.

This body was dying. A homeless vagrant had managed to help it travel and gather meals, but it had a mission to complete, and it would need a new body to inhabit. And, if this Uraraka was lucky, she would have the honor.

The creature licked it's fangs, savoring the bloody ichor, as the fight began.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this one took so long. I've been working on other things and bigger stories, so I had to put this one on the back burner for a bit. I've been working on it ever since I finished the last one, little touch-ups and add-ons as the story went along, but never got to make any big changes that could finish it fully.
> 
> Anywho, y'all stay safe out there and don't catch anything, be they viruses or alien symbiotes.


	12. Battle Part 2: The Interlude

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku and Venom face possibly one of their strongest rivals yet, as other pieces are set in place.

The ring fell silent as both Uraraka and face to face, ready and rearing to go. Bakugou’s hands were jammed in his pockets, his back slouched as he glared at her. Uraraka just tried to put on a good game face, despite how intimidating her opponent was. Even without trying Bakugou projected an aura of pure malice and killing intent. But Uraraka had come this far, and she wouldn’t back down. She would go to the end to reach her goal.

Bakugou glared up at her, shifting his feet, as the fires around the arena died down. “You’re the floaty one, right round-face?”

“Round face?” She asked in surprise, still annoyed he hadn’t bothered to learn anyone’s names.

“If you’re gonna back down, do it now, cause crying uncle later ain’t good enough.” He continued on, as if she hadn’t said anything.

As the countdown rang out, Jirou covered her eyes, as Tsuyu nervously poked at her chin.

“I’m not sure I can watch this.” Jirou remarked.

Many in the crowd shared the same sentiments, some eyeing and looking around nervously, unable to believe what was possible the most brutal and aggressive kid in the ring was going up against this seemingly innocent girl. Shoto and Endeavor, from opposite vantage points, watched, slightly intrigued, both their expressions unemotive. Godzillo crossed his arms in front of himself, sighing slightly, hating to wait for this all to start.

Iida turned to Izuku, nervously rubbing the backs of his hands as the fight counted down. “So what was your plan for Uraraka?”

“It was pretty simple, just evade his right hook, and touch him.” Izuku explained, as Tokoyami looked at him slightly, uncertain. “even if by accident, a single touch could end the fight.”

“I’m not sure she’ll be able to get in close enough.” Tokoyami muttered.

The timer rang out, as Present Mic shouted to the crowds. “Begin!”

Uraraka immediately charged in, not wasting a moment, and going right in. “Backing down was never an option!” 

Bakugou seemed somewhat surprised by the sudden attack, but didn’t let it stop him for too long. While he would’ve loved to charged in first, if she wanted to finish this so early, he’d happily let her. He threw back his right hand, sparks flying from it, as energy crackled and built up, as he waited for her to close the distance. Uraraka didn’t even hesitate or linger for a moment, charging straight in, and, once she was within range, let loose, swinging his open palm forward, and releasing a charged blast of explosive energy, dust and smoke flying through the air as the heat and fire surged otuwards.

Nearly everyone in audience felt their breath catch in their throats as the attacked tore through the area. Bakugou jumped through the smoke, clearing most of it out of his vision, and swinging the other hand forward. 

“Now, DIE!” He shouted, as he grabbed onto the gym uniform material and slammed it down to the ground, ready to let loose another explosion.

Bakugou’s confident, bloodthirsty smile faded, as he touched the gym uniform and only the gym uniform. He turned to his right, catching Uraraka running at him, heading for his shoulder. Her fingers got within inches of his shoulder, before he turned on his heel and unleashed another explosion, sending her backwards, rolling over her shoulder, before coming back on her feet.

“Such reflexes...” Venom hissed in surprise. “No wonder he gave us such problems in our fight.”

‘Problems,’ Izuku mentally snorted. ‘He almost killed you.’

“So have many other things.” Venom grumbled in annoyance. He wasn’t exactly happy over the fact that a child out of middle school had almost ended him after thousands of years of fighting, but he wouldn’t give Izuku the satisfaction of knowing it bothered him.

The fight continued, Uraraka charging again, bent low to the ground, hands readied, her glare focused on Bakugou, and, again, as she closed in, he released another explosion. Twice more, she charged in, and twice more, another explosion knocked her off her feet. Despite the bruises on her arms and face, and some minor scorch marks, she jumped to her feet again, ready to go.

Godzillo raised an eyebrow, impressed by her resolve. She was clearly outmatched. This Bakugou’s reflexes and ferocity were too much even for her determination, she seemed to have plan all her own. He had a feeling something big was about to happen, some pinprick feeling in the back of his scalp, but remained almost motionless as he watched, like a statue. 

She charged in yet again, low to the ground, only for Bakugou to yet again knock her back with another explosion. She got uneasily to her feet, rubbing the side of her face with the back of her palm, as she glared daggers at him. She had to win this, no other option. No matter what, Bakugou had a limit, she had to just find it and push on, no matter how bruised up she got. Bakugou however, for once, had lost the murderous gleam in his eye and savage grin, merely standing still and waiting for her to move, his face near-expressionless for once.

Cementoss sat on his chair, watching, with his feet kicked up, his stone face hiding the discomfort he felt with the fight.

“Hey, aren’t you supposed to stop the fight when it gets out of hand?” One of the spectators asked. “This is just painful.”

One of the heroes, seated far to Godzillo’s right, a caped hero dressed in gold, white and black, cape behind him, and a large JA on a specialized helmet on his forehead, stood up, fists clenched angirly.

“Hey, this is completely unbecoming of a hero!” He shouted. “The strength difference is so great, just knock her out of the ring.”

A thunderous inhuman growl echoed from Godzillo’s throat. The hero and the others turned to look in his direction, as he shoot a disgusted glare from the tops of his eyes at the hero, half standing, his fingers inadvertently turning into the blackened, twisted claws he used to gouge through kaiju flesh and building alike.

“Yare yare daze, are you really a hero, or some sorcerer mom concerned with some bruises?” He grumbled, shaking his head. “She came this far, she’s a big girl. He knows she’s strong, so he can’t let up. It’s how this works. If he didn’t, he’d lose, and disgrace this whole sport in the process. The winners always give it their all, regardless of the foe.”

He rolled his eyes, as he sat back, crossing one leg over the other. The other hero looked at him for a moment, confused and angered, but sat back down as well. Godzillo had personally hoped he would’ve pushed the subject further, so he could vocally tear him down some more, but decided against that. It would’ve probably been seen as petty and below someone of his status.

‘Rodan’s more of the petty, argumentative loud-mouth anyway.’ Godzillo thought to himself.

“Our Monster Spectator is correct.” Aizawa stated over the intercom, as Godzillo looked up in surprise. He hadn’t thought his rant was that loud to begin with. “Both of them came here to win. Anything less form either of them would be foolish. Even Bakugou has to go all out, no matter the opponent. Uraraka is no different.”

“Hmmph. She’s not dead yet.” Bakugou muttered to himself.

The two stood a few feet from each other, deep scars and explosions torn into the pavement and arena, as though Godzillo himself had tested his claws on the ground. Smoke and loose pieces of debris and dust blew in the breeze, as the two glared each other down. She raised both hands, breathing hard.

“Thanks Bakugou,” She managed through her teeth. “Thanks for never dropping your guard.”

Her fingers touched, pink energy flashing from her fingertips, as Bakugou looked at her in surprise, before looking around for a moment, then looking upwards. Her power to make things float had come into effect, and now he was about to face that full brought. He quite shocked by the amount and size of the rocks and stone fragments hanging over him, and now about to come crashing down on his head.

“My, my, all those insane attacks of hers had a purpose after all.” Neito Monoma of Class B remarked, watching the meteor shower she had made in amazement. “By staying low, she kept his focus low. Impressive.”

For anyone else, it would’ve been hard to develop a counter on the fly, but Bakugou was a master of on-the-fly planning and instinct-based combat. The Explosion-user raised both hands to the air, as sparks and smoke built up in his palms, before a column of fire roared outwards at the rockets coming to attack him. The column of smoke and fire tore through the air, as he added more and more juice to his explosion, until it consumed much of the air over him. Such fiery force was unleashed by it, Uraraka was sent flying backwards, rolling to her feet again, and Venom began to vibrate in pain from the sheer volume of the explosive roar overhead.

Uraraka’s jaw dropped as she the smoke and ash clear away, and her entire meteor shower was completely smashed to pieces, utterly vaporized.

“And just in one strong move, Bakugou has completely removed Ochako’s surprise attack!” Present Mic shouted in surprise, essentially reaffirming the fact she dread most. She had nothing else to lead with.

“I knew you’d pull something like that, being Deku’s little pal.” Bakugou clapped his hands together, dusting them off, and sighed. “Close one, but it’s useless.”

He looked back to Uraraka, raising his hands in preparation for another attack.

“And now, back to you, Uraraka.” He snarled, grinning in horrific satisfaction.

Uraraka steeled herself for the fight to come. Even if the gambit had failed, she wouldn’t stop, she could never stop. She had to win, just like how Deku would push himself to the limit to win, She stepped forward, and staggered, her vision swimming. She shuddered for a moment, struggling to keep herself up, before she fell to the ground, groaning to herself. Bakugou was taken by surprise that she had finally seemed to reach a limit of some sort. He stepped back a step, as Midnight jumped down landing over her, holding up a hand to stop Bakugou in case he kept going.

“I can’t stop.” She managed, her eyes distant and foggy. “I...I….dad….”

Her vision faded, as she went under, Midnight, standing slightly. “Ochako Uraraka cannot continue this round. Katsuki Bakugou is our winner.”

He stood for a moment in shock, uncertain what to do or even say, before nodding and heading away from the arena, as medical drones were called to take Ochako away and to Recovery Girl for a patch up. There was nothing for him here. Some of the audience gave half-hearted cheers, while others booed and hissed at Bakugou, who walked under the arch without a care

“With that, that ends our first round of matches.” Present Mic stated stiffly, as though he had been knocked off his feet by the sight of Ochako losing. “We’ll take an hour break, and prepare for the Second Round matches.”

Aizawa rolled his eyes in irritation at his friend’s behavior. It seemed the Radioactive Lizard was the only one thinking rationally anymore. “You’re getting way too personally involved with these matches. Calm it down a bit.”

Izuku, surprised and horrified, jumped to his feet, and began to make his way out of the stands towards the waiting rooms. Venom was growling constantly in his ear for him to slow down, take a breath, and wait a second before rushing out to see her, but he ignored his symbiote. He had to see her, had to help her anyway he could. He made his way through, walking by a set of stairs, as Bakugou was walking through on his way to the stands. The two locked eyes for a moment, as Bakugou glared at him, Izuku standing his ground.

“What the hell are you looking at scum?!” Bakugou demanded.

“Nothing! Calm down!” Izuku shouted back,

Bakugou snarled at him, eyes brimming with malice. “I saw that plan she put forward. Did you help her with that?”

“She didn’t take any of my help!” Izuku stated defensively. “She wanted to do this herself. If she gave you problems, it was all her, not me.”

Bakugou narrowed his eyes, turning away slightly, as he and Izuku glared each other down for a moment, before he went on his way to the stands.

“Whatever you do, be ready for the next rounds when I brush you aside, Deku.” Bakugou muttered, more to himself, but just loud enough for Izuku to hear.

He would be ready, Izuku knew he and Venom could handle it, but first, he needed to look after Ochako. He turned and ran off, as Bakugou lumbered off in the opposite direction.

In another corner of Japan, in a hidden meat packing plant, was an alien creature not that different from Venom itself, but this form more slender and less outwardly powerful in appearance. The putrid yellow creature had finished the meal it had captured, and sat in silence for a moment, watching the screen as Bakugou was displayed as the winner. Despite his victory, it was the loser that interested the inhuman creature the most. With no one around, it jumped down from the rafters, and landed with a soft thud, hissing slightly as it’s host body began to give out. Even with the meal, it was too weak, drugs, alcohol and abuse had taken their tole. It was time for a new one.

It was darkened within, despite the sun pouring in from outside, so the creature stuck to the shadows. The men and women who worked here had left in a hurry, but it was so transfixed by the TV and those two fighting, it mostly ignored them. She believed she had found the perfect host. It had come here with a team, but other then some reports that matched the Runt’s descprition, it couldn’t proscue anything, so desperat was it to stay alive.

For years it had waited, and now the chance had revealed itself. This Ochako Uraraka was a suitable host. Dependable, determined, strong enough and intelligent, and, as a bonus, was a female, much to this Symbiote’s personal perferance. All it had to do was make contact, and it could begin to carry out the operation. Hopefully, Uraraka was a good genetic match as well.

It marched along silently, the animals deathly silent within their pens, as it drooled slightly, but did nothing. It had it’s fill of meat, so there was little reason for her to go after them. It looked around, body stiffening slightly, as it felt something change in the winds around it. It stopped for a moment, just in time for five red dots to dance along it’s form. It growled in anger, as it turned to the source, towards the windows, where several heavily armed humans were perched, armed with heavy weapons and advanced rifles.

It sneered at them, drool dripping off it’s fangs. All that gear, weapons and training would go to waste. They were just fodder, after all. It jump through the window, screeching at the top of it’s lungs, as the guns opened fire, bullets tearing through the walls and smashing into the Symbiote’s hide, before crumbling and bouncing off, as it stretched it’s claws out in front of itself, and jumped at the nearest soldier.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Bakugou made his way back to the stands with the other students, looking possibly more irritable then he usually did, if such a thing was possible. Whether it had been how much trouble Uraraka had given him, or Izuku’s words, or some mixture of both, no one could be sure, and no one would want to make sure. Despite his harsh expression, it did nothing to stop the others from mocking or belittling him. In fact, his expression only seemed to encourage them to rib him harder.

“Oh hey, the villain is back!” Seto said with mocking cheer. “Did you enjoy beating up a weak girl?”

“Uneven match-ups aside, you do good playing the villain Bakugou.” Tsuyu remarked, tapping her chin with her finger slightly. “Maybe you should become a wrestling Heel or something?”

“Shut up, or else!” Bakugou yelled, glaring daggers at them, as some of the Class-1B members peaked over the wall dividing them in annoyance.

“You coulda atleast held back a little, like I did.” Denki said with a roll of his eyes, as he crossed his arms in front of him to try and look cooler. “If I had gone all out on her.”

“You lost fair and square and you know it Kaminari.” Tsuyu replied, as Bakugou marched over, past the other students and plopped down on the seat next to Jirou, who did not look at all happy about the seating arrangement.

“There was nothing frail about her.” He muttered, shaking his head. “Nothing at all.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
In Prep Room 2, Izuku found Uraraka, who was seated at the table, still nursing a few bruises and having a bandage over a scar on her cheek, but generally seemed fine. He was quite surprised to see her up and about so soon after getting tossed around and beaten so badly, but brushed it off. Recovery Girl was capable of quite a lot of healing, almost to the same level as what Venom could do when Izuku ate right and made sure he got the chocolate he needed.

Uraraka gave a nervous smile to him, scratching the back of her head. “I guess I lost.”

Deku stood numbly in the doorway for a moment, unsure of what to say or do, before entering. “Are you alright Uraraka?”

Venom’s head coil and branched out from Izuku’s shoulder a moment later. “I could heal anything let like I do with Izuku.”

“No, that’s fine. I just got carried away in the fight when I thought I could win.” She explained, before pointing to her cheek. “I gotta let myself heal bit by bit, so my stamina doesn’t get drained.”

Izuku was surprised Venom would offer to heal her, but then again the Symbiote had expressed a liking for her, and seemed more fond of her then the rest of the class. It made sense he would try and help as much as possible. If he was overstepping some bonds by trying to set them up together…

“But Bakugou was so strong! I couldn’t put a scratch on him!” She said, shaking her fist as her fire from when the tournaments were first announced returned to her voice. “I’ll have to train harder for next time.”

Izuku was taken aback by her sudden change in demeanor, as Venom’s Glasgow Grin widened with malice and joy. “I could...”

“Venom.” Izuku said sternly. He wasn’t opposed to her trying, but he didn’t like whatever Venom could be going at. His Symbiote fell dutifully silent, retreating back into his body.

“I’m sorry, sometimes I get like that in a competition.” She muttered, pointing her fist down with a nervous smile, as she shut her phone off from beeping. “I see you trying to always beat the next challenge, and I feel kinda inspired.”

Izuku wasn’t sure what to say, wanting to consult Venom for some advise or something, but thought against it. The Symbiote was better equipped for ripping people limb from limb and smashing through the side of a building, not giving advise to his friends on how to train and all. Before he could even think to say anything else, the loudspeaker sounded off.

“After their draw, Tetsutestu and Kirishima are engaged in an arm wrestling match to decide the winner and break the tie!” Present Mic shouted for all to hear. “Let’s see where it goes!”

Izuku was surprised, but that most likely meet they were almost ready for the next matches to start, and this was just a sideshow to keep everyone busy before things rampped up. Venom hissed within his ear, sending a chill down his spine.

“We should head out, Todoroki will need all our preparation we have.” Venom advised.

“Right.” Izuku said with a nod, before turning back to Uraraka. “I have to get ready. I’m gonna win this for both of us.”

He gave her a confident smile, as she gave him the thumbs up. “Good luck out there, I’ll be rooting for ya.”

He left with a nod, closing the door behind him. As he walked down the hall, he heard her talking, what he assumed was the other person on the line, and beginning to cry. He couldn’t know for certain, but had a feeling it had to do with the match. He didn’t blame her, but he did feel guilty. All his tactical advise and abilities, and he couldn’t repay her for everything she did. Venom appeared from his shoulder, teeth and fangs clicking slightly.

“She did all she could, and went out with an impressive display of strength,” He stated, bobbing about slightly. “That’s all most of us Warriors can hope for in battle.”

“So, what are we gonna do?” Izuku asked the Symbiote. “Todoroki will be tough.”

“Without the fire, we should have the advantage.” Venom replied. “That’s my only worry.”

Izuku wasn’t so sure. Ice wasn’t exactly something he was excited about. How would they break through his defenses and attacks? Could they survive being frozen.

“One of...” Venom began, before stopping. “Someone approaches.”

Izuku stopped for a moment, confused by his statement, before a massive, muscle bound frame came into view. It was a man dressed in a long white overcoat with flame designs on it, and baggy pants of similar appearance, spiked boots on his feet, and a face that looked like he had been through a fight or ten.

“Uh, sorry.” Izuku said nervously as the figure looked at him strangely, the student struggling to find his words around such an intense hero. “I...I have a fight coming up.”

“You’re that kid with all the tentacles and teeth right?” The man asked, his voice curious but his expression cold and unchanging.

“Ah, right, yes, right.” Izuku said nervously.

“That’s a pretty sweet Quirk you get.” He said with a small smile. “I’ve seen some strange abilities, but nothing like that.”

“Oh, thank you.” Izuku replied, surprised by his words, and wondering just who this was.

“I’m not allowed to say this to the students and all, but I am looking to scout you.” The man remarked, giving him a thumbs up, as it changed into a blacked claw, covered with keloid scar-like scales. “You do good out there, alright kid? You’re going far.”

“Thanks.” Izuku managed, as the man marched past, his body shaking slightly as the ground vibrated from the man’s footfalls, and he waited for him to pass before speaking again. “Who was that? I know that costume from somewhere.”

A loud crashed sounded form the intercoms, as Izuku jumped from the surprise. Present Mic came on seconds later.

“And with that Kirishima wins the draw form earlier!” He yelled to the crowds. “We now are ready to move onto our second matches!”

Izuku took a deep breath to prepare himself for the coming fight. Even without fire, as he said before, he would still have his hands almost completely full with trying to overpower and beat him. As he was thinking it over, his eyes flashed black again, as they came to stop, Venom sensing another individual approaching. Well, they felt him at least before they saw him. Moving up the stairs, was the famous hero, the number 2, Endeavor, fire burning off his form.

“So this is the one Shoto want’s to distance himself from?” Venom asked with a low growl. “Interesting.”

“En...Endeavor!” Izuku yelped in surprise.

Endeavor looked at him for a moment, his expression unchanged. “Ah, I remember you. You’re the one with that Quirk like the Jet Black Vigilante from a while back.”

Izuku struggled for words once more, this time due to the sheer pressure of being near Endeavor. Venom had retreated back into his body to escape the blazing heat coming from Endeavor’s body, but even so, Izuku could feel the Symbiote squirming nervously beneath his chest.

“I can see why you didn’t go all out before, might attract negative attention.” Endeavor remarked, stroking the flames that made up his beard. “Though I might I suggest something?”

“Ah, yes, what?” Izuku asked nervously, scratching the back of his neck.

“Don’t hold back. I want to see what Shoto can do against someone of your strength level.” Endeavor remarked, a small, arrogant grin spreading across his face. “It will give us something to work on in the future.”

Not for the first time, Izuku felt the need to wipe the smile off Endeavor’s face, and to utterly flatten him and anyone else that got in his way, before he lurched slightly, shaking it off. He was almost terrified of often these intrusive thoughts were happening, ever since the UA attack. Was he damaged or something from the attack? Did this have something to do with the Shigaraki guy? He shook it off and nodded slightly, narrowing his eyes.

“That’s all I wanted to say. Good luck out there.” Endeavor remarked.

He walked past Izuku, who plastered himself to the wall to get away from the heat, and as he walked past, Izuku cleared his throat to speak again.

“You know, Shoto...Shoto isn’t you.” He said, looking over his shoulder at Endeavor. “He’ll do what he wants, and accomplish his own goals.”

Endeavor narrowed his eyes, his blue eyes focused in rage at Izuku for a moment, before walking away. Izuku ran off to get to the field. It did not take him long to arrive, as they called out the two to take the field. Shoto and Izuku stood on opposite sides, as Venom’s biomass began to overtake Izuku’s arms and legs, preparing himself mentally and physically for the fight to come.

Elsewhere, in a darkened corner of Japan, a forgotten bar turned into a living quarters for the unwanted dregs of society, a young man with messy, light blue hair sat back near a screen, itching slightly at his throat.

“Now, you should both watch this fight carefully,” His teacher advised from the SOUND ONLY computer. “The heroes from now will be important foes in the future. And one of them having a Klyntar only complicates things.”

“I’m not scared of any brat, even one with a Symbiote.” Shigaraki scoffed with a malicious grin, fighting the urge to laugh at the idea.

At the doctor’s lab, a silver figure, similar to Venom, leaned out of the shadows, watching the fight commence on a screen overlooking the labs behind All for One. Other then being taller and more powerful in build, it could’ve been an exact copy of Venom, with the exception of the silver color, with bits of red along it’s body, and the blackened eyes over it’s eyes. It’s face bent into a wide smile, claws clicking slightly as it studied the fight before him.

“Venom?” He said, holding back a chuckle of disdain. “He’s a runt. The weakest of our team. There’s nothing to learn from him, or a weak host like his. How did he even survive all these years?”

“Well, whatever you say. I only give advise.” All for One remarked with a chuckle. “Do as you wish.”

Despite both their attitudes, Shigaraki and Riot continued to watch the coming fight as it played out. For Shigaraki, it was merely because he, despite his words, wanted to follow his master’s words of wisdom and know how to beat the one kid who had embarrassed him and taken away his Nomu. Riot, meanwhile, merely wanted to know how best to break Venom and his host when the battle would come.

In the Meat Packing plant, the area just outside of facility was filled only with the broken and beaten bodies of the special forces team that had gone in to capture. The yellow-red colored creature stood over them, green, slime-like saliva dripping from it’s fangs as it approached the leader of the Military team, who right hand had been slice off, thrown and lodged in a nearby wall, and he was barely moving or breathing.

“What...isssss a...Meat packing plant...doing with secrurity details like this?” The Symbiote hissed, it’s tendril-like hair lashing out and wrapping around the man’s remaining arm and waist. “Why are you here?”

The man grunted in pain, struggling for a moment, before focusing on the creature before him. “We’re not security. We’re...sent to capture you….”

“You failed.” The creature said simply, a sadistic grin spreading over it’s mouth.

“What do you want, alien?” The man grumbled, blinking several times to clear his vision.

“UA, where issss it.” The creature hissed.

The man was confused for a moment, looking around for a moment, and looked at the creature to make sure he had heard right. “In...Mustafu City…?”

“Where are we now?” The Alien asked with a growl.

“Koriba...in Hokkaido. Thousands of miles from Mustafu.” The man said in confusion. “Why?”

The creature’s face peeled back, to reveal a human male’s face, extremely pale, bags under his eyes, said eyes glazed over. The creature seeped back into place, clicking it’s fangs.

“My hosssst issss falling apart. He served his purpose. I need another.” The Symbiote explained.

“How are you gonna get there?” He asked, trying feebly to escape.

“You provided me the answer.” The creature said.

The man narrowed his eyes. “I won’t be your host! I’m not taking that death sentence.”

“No, you’re the message I’m sending to whoever sent you in.” It responded simply, opening it’s jaws. “I’m getting hungry.”

It pulled him in and bite down on his head, and with a wet, crunch, bite off said head and chewed it down. The creature approached one of the bodies, unconscious, but still alive, and grabbed it by the throat, it’s body beginning to pull itself into the being’s body, as it left behind the old, broken body that had carried it for so many months. Jumping hosts was an annoying practice, but until it found the right one, she couldn’t afford to stay in the wrong one. The old bum’s body dropped, as the Special Forces Soldier stood up, readjusting the body armor slightly, rolling it’s shoulders and looking around, as his eyes flashed yellow for a moment, and left the area, walking past the discarded legs and lower body of another Special forces trooper, and leaving without a word.

It had to reach Mustafu City soon. Very soon. The mission depended on it. All that mattered was the mission. It would sift through this New Host’s memories to uncover what exactly had tried to capture and restrain her later. First it needed to reach Ochako. She would be a most powerful host organism for it, and she could retrieve one of her teammates in the process.

She just had to get there first.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was another chapter more spent on setting up character and future plot points. Though Riot and Scream showed up here, they won't show up again until much, much later. I don't want to rush things and start jamming in Symbiote after Symbiote until it fits the story. Hence, Riot's in the lab using bums as temp hosts, while Shigaraki is stuck being a normal Crusty Boi.
> 
> First, I have to get through this part. To me, my most interesting stuff with this story comes later, with the Internships, Shigaraki forming the LoV fully and getting Riot, but first thing's first, this part of the story.


	13. Void of Space, The Ice and Fire of Eath.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The big fight between Todoroki and Izuku has finally arrived.

Todoroki and Izuku squared off, frost building on Shoto’s fingertips, as Venom’s tentacles wrapped and coiled around Izuku like serpents ready to strike. The two stood tensed and readied, both of their thoughts focused on what had brought them here and lead them to this very moment, the people counting on their performance. Everything, even the shouting and cheering, and Present Mic’s voice, seemed to fall silent, neither caring about anything else bu the one across from them right now.

Elsewhere, from two very different locations under Shigaraki’s master’s control, sat the anarchistic youth who brought rot and decay, and the Symbiote leader Riot, watching their future rivals prepare themselves. In their apartment, Izuku’s mother sat within an ocean of tissues, crying from sheer nerves of seeing her beautiful boy going up against the big leagues. In some darkened corner of Japan, away from it all, out of sight and mind from any authorities, was a leather-clad youth, his horrifically scared face mostly studded and braided, watching from a public TV monitor as the fight began to build up, eyes narrowed at the sight of Shoto.

Ochako arrived in a dead run from the prep room where she had been resting, breathing a little hard from her earlier crying and the sprint she had taken to get here to see the fight.

“Uraraka are you alright?” Iida asked, shocked by her appearance, her eyes red and sore from rubbing too much. “You should see Recovery Girl about that, can you even see?”

“I got all healed up this is...something else.” She said quickly, avoiding eye contact, embarrased, before changing the subject. “Has the fight started yet?”

“You’re just in time for the start.” Tokoyami stated, gesturing to the seat that was Deku’s. “Please, sit.”

Iida watched the fights, slightly chopping the air as he sat on the edge, uncertain of what would come next. “I’m not sure Izuku has the power to take on such overwhelming power.”

In the arena, Shoto stood at attention, hardly moving a muscle, as Venom coated Izuku’s hands in his blackened mass, claws extending outwards as he prepared for the attack.

‘Shoto won’t wait, he’ll overwhelm us in an instant with his powers,’ Izuku thought quickly, eyes flashing black for a moment. ‘We have to get in close.’

“I vote we crush his ribs in and watch his struggle for his final breaths.” Venom suggested with a joyful hiss. “Or just backhand him out of the arena.”

“We’re going with the second.” Izuku grunted in reply. With the intrusive thoughts of violence he had been having lately, he didn’t want to take any chances with Venom.

“Ready, Start!” The announcer shouted, as Todoroki’s eyes flashed with determination. Izuku barely had time to even contemplate an attack plan, before a wave of ice rushed at him.

Spikes of white and blue rushed towards him, as Venom took over his legs in oil-like mass, and jumped upwards, angling himself in the air, as Izuku stiffened in horror. The way Venom was carrying them down, they were bound to land on the spikes and sharpened shards of frost. Yet Venom was not without a plan. Sending out three tentacles from Izuku’s stomach, he latched onto the ice and slammed down into a section of the attack wave more smoothed over, even the ice wall continued to push forwards. Venom, not wasting a second to analyze, jumped forward, clawing upwards, until the wall stopped moving suddenly. Either he had thought he had pushed Izuku out of bounds, was nearing the stadium’s stands, or simply wanted to stop for a moment and see where his opponent had gone, but it gave Venom and Izuku the chance to scrap their way up and around the ice wall to get to him.

Shoto had indeed stopped, looking over the great ice barricade he had created to smash through Izuku in an instant. His foe had vanished in the attack, but that gave him time to collect his bearings and prepare another attack. He looked all around, trying to find any sign, any little piece that would indicate where Izuku was hiding or had gone during the attack. While he had hoped the overwhelming barrage would simply send him flying out of bounds and end the fight here, Shoto had a feeling Izuku and his bizarre Quirk were too stubborn and tenacious to go down so easy.

His doubts were prove almost instantly, when, as he analyzed the area before him, a brief flicker appeared atop the ice wall, just the faintest signs of blue and green above him, most likely his uniform and hair. It might’ve been a trick of the light, or his foe, but either way, Shoto wasn’t taking any risks from his foe launching another dive attack at him. Form his foot sprang another Ice wave, this one smaller and more narrow in build, and aimed upwards at the target.

Izuku was surprised by how fast he had reacted and attacked them before they could even launch a counter. Shoto’s reflexes were almost super-natural, never giving his opponent a time to think before he was launching another attack to overwhelm them. Luckily, Venom was not as slow to react, and had his own alien senses and reflexes to call upon. He jumped to the left, letting the second ice blast scream past him, as it smashed through the first and went upwards, clawing and running past it’s side.

Izuku and Shoto locked eyes, glaring at each other for a moment, before Shoto sent another black of ice. This one moved to the side of the second wall, moving to intercept him at high speed. Venom this time, coated Izuku’s entire body and jumped off slightly, before pulling back his fist and smashing into the ice wall, the attack stopping for a moment, before shattering. Cold was expelled out across the arena, as Venom landed on all fours, before standing, and most of him receding away into Izuku’s body, except for his limbs. Izuku’s right shook in pain slightly, feeling numb, before he noticed Shoto wasn’t attacking right away.

He looked ready to move, but he was still, mostly anyway. Now that he was closer, he saw that Shoto was shivering slightly, and blue-white ice had built up on his right arm and part of his face. Most of the audience however, was amazed by his power and ability. He seemed stronger then most pros.

“This has been fun Midoriya, thanks.” Shoto remarked coldly. “Thanks to you, the old bastard doesn’t look too happy.”

He glanced over at his angered father, who remained silent as always, merely watching with a judgmental expression, waiting for his son to get over this tantrum stage at any moment. Shoto glared back at Izuku, as he flexed his hand, as though to get feeling back in it. He stepped forward, pointing a finger at him.

“This fight’s over, apologies. But you’re out of your depth here.” Shoto remarked. “I’m out of your league. You’re specialized.”

“Who said I’m done yet?!” Izuku demanded, as Venom began to solidify over his entire body, his senses warning him of another attack.

Shoto sent another Ice barrage his way, but Venom was now far closer then before, a few meters apart, and was able to react instantly, swinging forward and smashing the ice attack apart with a punch, then second, and then a third, leaving nothing but shattered ice blocks and crystal shards all around, but leaving Shoto’s attack in pieces. Once more, Venom’s alien form retreated out of sight, as Izuku lifted up their clawed hands before Shoto.

“Even after every overwhelming attack, Izuku is still standing!” Present Mic announced in excitement. “At this point, it’s anyone’s game still!”

Shoto didn’t exactly like that, but Izuku was able to fight off the Nomu creature in close combat, however briefly and closely the fight was. He just had to accept that even for a person geared for close combat, beating them wasn’t going to be a walk in the park. As his father had drilled into him during their training/torture sessions, no plan survived contact with the enemy. Izuku closed his claws into fists, and glared at Shoto.

“Quirks are physical abilities right? Even yours has limits!” He shouted. “You could always use your left side to thaw yourself out and beat me.”

Shoto bared his teeth in rage, glaring at him angrily, as cold air shot out of his nose and mouth. “After everything he’s done...”

“Everyone here, in our Class or not, is giving it 100% to reach their dreams, and you’re half-assing it!” Izuku shouted in righteous fury. “You haven’t even put a dent in me yet, so go all out and give me everything you’ve got!”

Venom was personally torn on what Izuku was doing. He definitely wanted a challenge, and Shoto already had provided the alien warrior with one, but on the other hand, he was not terribly eager to get lite on fire. He almost wanted to run, but two things kept him planted with Midoriya. The first being his host’s drive, the second, his pride as a warrior. Both were more important then his aversion to his species’ greatest weakness.

‘We are, both of us warriors, no matter how much of a loser you are.’ Venom thought privately, away from Izuku’s own mind. ‘Let’s overcome these obstacles, together.’

He also knew Izuku’s plan, the half-baked and insane plan, but none the less one. He wasn’t sure he agreed, even now, but for once, he kept his doubts to himself. Midoriya wanted this, and if his host wanted it, Venom would want it too. Shoto shook slightly, his eyes distant and blurry, as images of his past began flashing before him, images of his mother…

He closed his eyes and shook his head, before glaring at him. “Did my old man put you up to this? Did he pay you?”

He ran to Izuku, jumping over one of the ice shards in his path, and raising his left hand. His movements were sluggish, and for someone like Venom, too slow to not see him coming. He reached out to touch Izuku, his fingers coming within inches of his opponent’s face, before he pulled back, then swung a hook into his face, landing with a meaty crack that silenced almost the entire arena, as Shoto stumbled away, holding his face in pain. Izuku jumped at him, swinging his other hand back to cleave at him with the claw, before Shoto flicked his wrist forward and created a wall of ice between them, knocking Izuku backwards from the force of it.

“I thought all that climbing would take some energy out of you,” Shoto managed, despite the pain in his cheek and the split going through his lip, blood dripping from the wound. “You’re just as stubborn as I’d thought.”

“I’m shooting for number one! Giving anything less then my best isn’t an option!” He shouted, a deep fire in his green eyes. “I’ve gotta meet those expectations then!”

He charged again, jumping forward with enough force to leave two foot-sized imprints in the concrete. He jumped again at Shoto, grabbing him by the color, and pulling back his fist to strike him with a left hook again across the face, but Shoto raised his arm, blocking the strike with his forearm, though shuddering from the impact and force, before turning his wrist and grabbing Izuku’s Symbiote-covered forearm and spreading some ice across the arm. Midoriya back-peddled, as he shook his frozen limb to try and break and melt the ice from his body.

Venom sent more of his biomass into the frozen arm, expanding it slightly, before it tore and ripped it’s way from the ice, shards of ice sent outwards. The Venom mass returned to “normal” size, still making Izuku look like his normal arms ended in the overly muscled arms of some demonic gorilla of some kind. The two stood off for a moment, studying and starring each other down for a moment, catching their breath and their bearings for the next attack.

“I can’t begin to imagine being you, your experiences, determination, everything,” Izuku said after a moment. “If you get to Number One without even trying your all, are you really serious?”

Back in the stands, Bakugou watched with interest, wondering about the limits of Todoroki’s power. Icy-Hot had limits, like everyone else. He himself had designed his Grenadier Gauntlets to overcome his weaknesses and enable him to push for larger and larger explosions. The frost covering his body had grown, and Bakugou could tell it was slowing him down. Kirishima was seated behind, having just recovered from his bout with Tetsutestu, who had quickly become his new best friend as well.

“So, Bakugou, how do you think our fight will go?” Kirishima asked with a grin.

“I’ll destroy you.” Bakugou said bluntly. “Now shut up, I need to watch this and think this over.”

“Oh, thinking, don’t hurt yourself.” Kirishima teased, as Bakugou flipped him off and went back to the fight.

Izuku charged again, and Shoto, with everything he had left, raised an ice wall in front of himself and in a semicircle around himself. Izuku was surprised he had been able to block him so quickly, but found a critical flaw in his strategy. His wall was high, but lacked in strength compared to his earlier attacks. Slamming both claws into the ice, he pried into them, and then began splitting the ice in two, before the massive ice wall finally gave way and shattered apart, icicles and pieces falling around him. He yelled a fierce battle cry at the top of his lungs, Venom’s own voice mixing in as his eyes flashed black for a moment, and he charged at Shoto.

Todoroki had studied him, and it was obvious Izuku was a fan of All Might. He couldn’t blame him for that, but it colored his fighting style. As the Symbiote Student closed to try and punch and man-handle him again, Shoto ducked down and spread a blast of ice from his finger tips onto Izuku’s feet, and locked them in place, before he ducked and put distance between himself and Izuku, who struggled for a moment to get free. Even with that, things didn’t look good for Todoroki. His right arm and leg were covered in ice sheets, and the parts of the skin visible were swollen, and in some areas blue and black, like he had been severely bruised. He shuddered for a moment, and flexed his fingers, trying to get feeling back in them and the blood flowing again.

Izuku, however, was undaunted, even as he struggled to get free. “Is that all you got? I thought you wanted to be Number One. Maybe you should just forget about it!”

Shoto again jerked back as his mind flashed to time in his childhood, when his father had first begun their physical training. He had keeled over, utterly beaten and exhausted. He just couldn’t go on. The thick smell of sweat and repugnant odor of vomit hung over his mouth and around his nose. His father loomed over him, fire burning around his face and hair, dressed for training.

“Come on, get up. If that’s all you can take, you can forget about being able to take out a third-rate villain, much less All Might.” He grumbled, even as Shoto coughed and struggled to breath. “You’re not Touya. Get up.”

Shoto’s mother made the mistake of rushing to his side, to try and help her injured son. “Please, he’s too exhausted, you have to stop this!”

“He can handle it!” Endeavor barked at her in anger, before smacking her aside. “Now, out of my way!”

Shot shook himself off, coming back to the present, as he tried to focus on the fight. He shook slightly, both from the memories coming back in full, and the effects of the frostbite on his arms. He struggled to his feet, taking a deep breath to calm himself as he focused on the fight once more. But he could not get himself to focus before his eyes and within his mind, he was back to when he was kid, flashing to events all throughout his childhood. His desire to play with his brothers and sister, and isolated from them by his father, for being “imperfect”, his mother driven to the breaking point by his abuse, and finally, her snapping, and the tea kettle of boiling water…

What he hated the most wasn’t his father’s abuse or driving his mother to such a point. Even now, Shoto could feel the hatred boiling up in him like the water that scared him, towards how he had dumped her in a mental ward, for damaging his “Master piece and finest creation”. Of all the things he had done, it was the tipping point for Shoto, and from then on, there was no point even trying to mend fences or work with the man. He had long ago decided to never call him father, and this merely pushed him to never want to acknowledge him as even another human being.

But for all of that, Shoto found himself asking himself one simple question. Why was he remembering all this. Why now, why here? It made no sense to him, and he couldn’t begin to figure out why his memories were flashing back all of a sudden. He glared at Midoriya. Since he had started talking, and this fight had started, the memories had clawed their way back up.

He stepped towards Izuku with some difficulty, as he shattered the ice around his gym shoes, freeing himself, as he stepped towards Todoroki.

“I’ll show him what I can...” Shoto began, trying to build up ice on his left side again, only to find it even more difficult to lift his hand.

“Your power...It’s yours! It’s always been yours!” Izuku shouted. “Not everyone has that! You can decide what you do with it!”

Venom was still rather surprised Izuku had wanted to follow such a path, but said nothing. If he wanted to help someone else, he would assist in that. The Symbiote studied Shoto for a reaction, but he was still, his eyes blurry, as he blinked several times. For whatever reason, those words seemed to have brought out a memory of his. The symbiote wasn’t sure if it was happiness or sadness. He had never been good at reading humans from afar. Give him a scent, a taste, more basic things, and he would read them easily, but Todoroki? This was one was difficult to read.

Shoto’s mind was back again, back to the time when he first saw All Might. It was that person, more then anyone, more then the man who should’ve been his father, that Shoto had decided to be a hero. It was All Might’s words, and those of his mother, that really inspired him. He was taken back to a time when he was a child again, but this one a happy memory, a time that was far more innocent.

‘How could I have forgotten?’ He thought, as he remembered the scene before him.

“While it is true that parents often pass along their Quirks, that is not all that matters, of course not.” All Might’s bombastic, comforting voice filled his ears. “You, yourself, are the one who decides what you will do with your powers. No one else.”

As he stood within the arena, a tear came to his eye. He remembered one of the words that hung with him the most, the words he had forgotten, in his single-minded desire to show-up his father.

“You decide what you want to become.”

Izuku instinctively backed away, Venom shrieking within his ears in terror, as a wave of heat blasted the area, all the way up to the stands, as Shoto ignited his Left Side, fire burning up his arm and face, but not harming him. The ice and frost along his arm and legs and under the skin melted away instantly, his skin returning to it’s usual color, the blood flowing rapidly once more, as he stood triumphantly once more. Everyone in the stands watched in shock, as Endeavor’s face bent itself into a twisted smile of pure pride and joy, taking everyone near him by surprise as his usual dour expression fell away. All Might, all skin and bones watched in surprise at this turn of events, at first not knowing what his two students were doing, but now certain he had pieced together.

“I thought you wanted to win, but it seems like you’re the one not giving it your all,” Shoto said simply, his anger and rage falling away. “Trying to inspire your opponent and all doesn’t seem like a good idea.”

Venom enveloped Izuku completely, gnashing his fangs in slight terror at the flames before him, wanting to run, but again, fighting the instinct to, standing his ground to protect Izuku. His Glasgow Grin widened once more, but this time, in pride, mirroring Izuku’s inner-emotions and his own smile beneath Venom’s slimy hide. Shoto returned it, seemingly having difficulty finding a way to smile himself, but trying his best.

“I want to be a hero too Midoriya.” He said, red and orange tongues of fire building throughout his body.

“SHOOOOTTOOO!” Endeavor yelled from the stands. “So you’ve finally accepted your destiny! With my blood pumping through those veins, nothing will stop you! You’ll inherit and surpass my power in every way!”

“Didn’t expecting a pep talk from the loving parent now.” Present Mic blithely noted.

“Endeavor, with respect, shut the fuck up!” Godzillo barked, glaring at the Number 2. He had never liked the arrogance and pride in Endeavor. “No one wants to hear about your one-man eugenics program.”

“Go back to the movie sets, you’ve got no place here.” Endeavor barked back, glaring at him. The Flame Hero had always despised his desire to use his Hero position to waste peoples’ time with silly, fluff movies. “This is for real heroes.”

Elsewhere, All Might, unrecognizable in his bone-like frame, starred at Endeavor, as the three stood in a dark, moody silence. Here were three directions of the Hero population, each as different as night and day, and all of them linked deeper then stone. Godzillo bared his fangs, as Endeavor brought his flames under control once more, all three watching the battle to come. Any rivalries or disagreements would have to wait for the next generation to start their own path.

Todoroki merely kept on smiling, even as a tear traced down his cheek. He couldn’t fully come to grips with his own internal emotions, but wouldn’t let that stop him from wining. He focused on Midoriya, his gaze the usual cold, neutral look it always had before the fight.

“I know your Quirk or whatever is weak to fire, I can tell by your reaction now and how badly you did against Bakugou in your first match up.” Todoroki said pointedly, clenching a fist to focus his flames. “Whatever happens now, remember, we both give it our all, ok?”

Half of Venom’s face peeled away, as Izuku gave a confident grin. “We’ve been waiting to show what we’ve got. Let’s go.”

The slime of Venom’s body shifted and recovered Izuku’s face. The two stood apart for a moment, neither one making a move as the two prepared for their next attacks against each other. This battle would be over in a moment, a single swing or strike would determine who was left behind and lose, and who would advance to further heights. The two fighters circled each other, each step measured, slow, and carefully plotted, least they show a weakness to their foe.

Midnight and Cementoss watched in silence, uncertain of what direction the fight would go. Even Aizawa and Present Mic were as silent as the crowd, everyone on the edge of their seats to see which student would come out on top. The wind blow through, as the two stopped, watching each other. All Todoroki needed to do was hit him with a blast of fire and knock him out completely. His weakness to fire would do the rest. For Venom and Izuku, all they needed was one solid hit. After all his other injuries Venom and his host had raked up against the Fire and Ice user, one more hit would be enough to knock him out of the fight in total.

Minutes went by, feeling like hours for the two, as they prepared for their final attack. This would be an all or nothing for both of them, a striking while the iron was hot and both were vulnerable to each of their respective abilities.

Without another moment to waste, Venom roared and leaped forward, as Shoto wasted not a second, the fires burning more intensely and fanning out, the few ice objects that remained melted instantly, as Venom began to fray away and retreated into the left part of Izuku’s body, the furtherest part from Shoto’s horrific flames and powers.

Midnight and Cementoss watched uncertainly as the two closed the distance, the final blow within moments of happening. Neither was sure either was too injured to keep up the fight, but Izuku was supposed to be vulnerable to fire attacks and high heat. Could they keep the fight going, or would an injury occur, or possibly worst.

A massive blast of fire erupted from Shoto’s left, consuming everything nearby, as Izuku’s Venom enhanced fist crashed into the side of Todoroki’s face, as a firestorm exploded outwards. No one could make out a thing, as the ice was rapidly melted and the heat released coupled together with it to create a massive surge of steam and smoke. The spectators covered the faces and eyes to keep the oppressive heat out, as the two announcers tried to see through it, and find who was the winner.

“The heat and cold systems meeting has created a massive amount of steam and smoke,” Aizawa explained, squinting his eyes through the fogged windows, as Present Mic began wiping it clean. “We’ll have to wait and see who the winner is once everything clears.”

The smoke began to clear, Izuku and Shoto staggered, both of them injured. The right side of Izuku’s face, his right arm, and leg were horrifically burned, half his uniform burned away, the skin under red and raw. Venom, even on the less burned side of Izuku’s body, much of his own mass was gray and flaking away. Shoto’s own uniform, on the half of his body was also burned away, while the side of his face had been bruised and broken, his left eye swollen shut. Neither seemed to be able focus or move for a moment, before Todoroki fell to the ground first, and, as Venom retreated into Izuku’s body and fell soon after.

Midnight rushed to Izuku’s side, as Cementoss ran to Shoto’s. Present Mic looked on in shock off the top of his glasses, mouth agap, as Aizawa looked on, his eyes almost unreadable. 

“Midoriya, are you ok, can you hear me?” Midnight asked gently, placing two fingers softly against Midoriya’s neck, making sure his heart was still beating.

“I...I’m good...I think...” Izuku said softly, as she cringed slightly. His heart-beat was ok, but his breathing was shallow, and the burn wounds weren’t healing, even if Venom was supposed to do that.

“We need medical support here, Izuku’s too injured to continue!” Midnight yelled, as Cementoss looked up.

“Todoroki is unconscious, but breathing.” Cementoss reported. “We need medical support for both.”

“Is this a draw?” Present Mic asked, looking to Aizawa, hoping his greater wisdom and foresight in battle would be able to come up with a better call. “What do we do?”

“They’re both badly injured, but Izuku is the only one conscious, I would put forward the idea that he is the winner,” Aizawa stated sternly, getting everyone to look away from the scene. “However, we should wait for Recovery Girl to see who is the most ready for the fight to come.”

The two were gently placed onto the Drone Stretchers, and carried off, as the entire crowd fell silent. Endeavor seemed distant and inscrutable, his face stoic and unmoving. He had moved from the stands and silently left the stadium for the back parts of it and heading for Recovery Girl’s Medical Bay. The stadium was almost completely silent as everyone watched the two escorted off, none sure who to consider the true winner of the fight. It was hard to say, but both were impressive to say the least.

Was it Shoto, the man who mastered Ice and held power over fire, to surpass even his own father, or Izuku, his mysterious Quirk allowing him physical strength and agility beyond any normal human being. Aizawa seemed to sense the tension and uncertainty in the stands and among the bystanders, as he cleared his throat.

“Alright, let’s move onto our next fight. This one was tough, and you’re all correct to be so attached to the fight,” He said coldly. “Let’s get to the next fight and let our two fighters rest and heal up, ok?”

“Yes, yes.” Present Mic sputtered, clearing his throat. “Bakugou and Kirishima should be great to help focus our attention elsewhere.”

Everyone nodded and peeled their gaze away from the two as they carried away and into the archways of the stadium.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Shoto awoke, almost bolting upwards, before groaning aloud holding his side. Recovery Girl turned from her seat,away from the computer read-outs from both Izuku and Shoto. He looked at her in confusion for a moment.

“Take it easy and don’t move too much yet.” Recovery Girl ordered softly. “I set three of your ribs, but they need a little time to mend.”

Todoroki rubbed the side of his jaw, that aching as much as his side. “What happened?”

“You went all out, you and Midoriya.” Recovery Girl explained. “Both of you damaged yourselves to an extreme. It took a lot of my Quirk to heal you both.”

“Is Izuku alright?” Shoto asked, despite the pain in his jaw.

“He took damage from both of you and his Quirk overclocking.” Recovery Girl explained, before gesturing to her computer. “I’m about to send the report to Aizawa and Present Mic abut it.”

Shoto nodded softly, before he narrowed his eyes at the sight of a familiar figure appearing from behind the door. Endeavor opened the door and ducked slightly to get inside, a small smile on his face.

“I’m glad you’re alright, Shoto.” He said with a nod. “I don’t think you should’ve gone all out without more training, but you did great otherwise.”

Shoto said nothing, merely glaring at him in silence. Endeavor grinned, as he held up his hands.

“Now, that you’re over this rebellious phase, you can come and work in my agency.” Endeavor stated with great pride. “Train under me, and get a better grasp of your powers. The sky's the limit for you.”

“I haven’t gotten over anything.” Shoto said bluntly, ignoring the pain riding up his jaw and side of his face from Venom’s punch. “When I fought Izuku, I forgot all about you for a moment. I don’t know if this is good or bad.”

Endeavor’s face fell for a moment in surprise, before it returned to his usual dour expression. He wasn’t sure whether to be proud or not of his son, but he wouldn’t argue with him. Now was not the time to start butting heads with his son again. He would just let him heal up and start this again at a later date, when they were both ready. At least Shoto was finally using his left side, and ready to accept his place. With that, Endeavor left the room, Recovery Girl glared at him as he left, but said nothing, not wanting to intrude on Shoto’s buisness. He had been through enough, and given everything, didn’t want to add to his stress.

As she concluded her thoughts on the matter, five students barged right in, as thought to spite her,all of them looking worried and looking around the whole room. Shoto was surprised for a moment, before remembering these were Izuku’s friends, Tenya, Ochako, Asui, Tokoyami and Mineta. Though Tokoyami stood awkwardly among the others, they all seemed equally worried and were yammering and asking a million questions regarding the health of both Izuku and Shoto, though they all fell silent for a moment, seeing Shoto sitting up and staring at them strangely, before asking him if he was doing well and needing anything. He was rather overwhelmed to be honest, not used to people caring about him, and surprised people closer to Midoriya then he would try and see if he was alright.

“Now now! Don’t speak so loudly!” Recovery Girl commanded, her voice taking an authoritative tone for once. “Shoto is still recovering, and Izuku may be need more intensive care. Your noise makes that difficult!”

“Is he alright? I will donate anything if need be!” Tenya asked, looking worried, as he made a chopping motion with his right hand.

“No! Just give me space to work, and worry about your competition!” Recovery Girl commanded in annoyance, pinching the bridge of her nose.

“Get well soon Todoroki! Such shining exemplars of our class must be ready to lead by example!” Tenya said, almost though he was commanding Shoto to get well.

“Ok.” Shoto said awkwardly, as the others gave similar, though far less stiff and grandiose statements on the matter.

They were ushered out the door by the threat of Recovery Girl’s Cane, probably a more fearsome tool then anything All Might or Aizawa could produce. The five were herded out, as Shoto watched them without any emotion upon his face, only blinking a few times in surprise. He was taken a back, both by their loyalty and how they even extended their friendship and care towards him, despite having barely interacted with them. He’d have to ask Izuku why they were so eager to add him into their circle.

“I’m doing one last check-up on you, and after that you should be free to go.” Recovery Girl stated, interrupting his thoughts, as he looked up in surprise, his ribs aching again from his sudden movement. 

Once everything was done, Shoto was given some candies from Recovery Girl’s jar, and sent on his way. She advised him to move slowly and not move too much, for his ribs had almost set and would need a little more time. He was about to ask about Midoriya, when he looked over in the next wing, separated by a sheet. Between the sheets where they barely connected, he saw Izuku, covered now in Venom, the reptile-like figure scarfing down chocolate and some sort of cooked meat. Shoto was at first surprised they had so much food ready for Izuku, but almost slapped himself mentally. Recovery Girl had dealt with Izuku at least twice to his knowledge, and having the supplies, even the food to help him heal would be needed.

The Symbiote and he locked eyes for a moment, neither moving as a hunk of meat hung partially from Venom’s jaws, before he reared his head and snapped the meat back, chewing it twice before swallowing it whole. Shoto was disgusted on some level yet fascinated by Izuku’s Quirk. His father had followed the Jet Black Vigilante for a bit, before other, more high profile villains appeared, and Shoto was disgusted but at the same time curious about Izuku’s Quirk and it’s strange properties. It didn’t like any any he had seen before, but then again, Quirks were often random and wild.

“You fought well. Hone your skill further.” Venom said simply, as Shoto nodded and turned to leave. 

He headed back the stands, as quickly as he could without hurting or damaging his body or ribs. He wasn’t sure why Izuku wasn’t joining him, given his Quirk was active, but Venom seemed capable fo taking over the body on his own somehow. It was a strange Quirk to say the least, one Shoto would have to look more into if the chance ever presented itself. He looked down at his left hand as he walked, thoughts focused on his mother and Izuku. For so long he had tried to shunt away the past, and leave it behind, but now Izuku had awakened these memories again.

For once, he had no clue how to proceed or what to do with his powers. He hoped that he would have more time to think things over and order his thoughts coming forward. For now, he had to concentrate on winning the competition, or whatever was going to happen, and then move forward with using the other half of his Quirk. Izuku had been right. Everything was his choice.

He got back in the stands, as Aizawa and Present Mic began to prepare for the next fight, getting everyone hyped up and ready to go, before Aizawa produced a print-out from Recovery Girl’s office.

“According to Recovery Girl, Izuku, while stable, will need time to heal some of his wounds,” Aizawa read out to the crowds, as everyone fell silent. “Shoto Todoroki moves on to the next match in his place. We won’t risk Midoriya’s health over a metal.”

Everyone nodded stiffly, exchanging some aside glances, as Godzillo shifted his weight with the chair. He had seen the burn scars, but what had this kid done to injure himself so badly. All Might likewise, felt the need to retreat into the Medical wing and check up on his student, but refrained form doing so. If he was stable, he didn’t want to potentially interrupt Recovery Girl in a crucial moment.

Bakugou glared at the middle of the field, clenching a fist as he prepared to face off against Kirishima. He had wanted to face Deku himself, not the Half and Half bastard. That way, he could really prove who was the superior fighter among their class. He clenched a fist, as smoke rose from his hands, and, with the word from Present Mic, headed onto the field, as Kirishima approached from the opposite end. He had beaten Deku, but that was in a trial run, nothing basically. If he couldn’t break the dweeb here and now, in front of everyone, what was the point.

Bakugou snorted, as he gave his fingers a good crack, glaring at Kirishima with a glare that would’ve put the Kaiju Hero in the stands to shame, and prepared himself. Losing the chance to crush Deku wasn’t going to stop him from annihilating anyone in his path.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm quite happy with how this turned out. I've come to enjoy the chemistry between Izuku and Venom and their back and forth, as well as writing the fight scenes the two get stuck into.


	14. Family Honor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The battles continue, as Venom tries his best to patch up Izuku's injuries, and a new threat steps out of the shadows.

Izuku sat on the bed, the last of the devices and IVs unhooked from his wrist and body, his wounds and everything mostly healed. There were still bags under his eyes, and he felt drained and tired. He looked down at his hands, surprised to see his right hand was burned, along the ring finger and pinky, all the way up his form arm, both fingers gnarled and swollen now. He looked at it in surprise.

“I can’t heal fire-related injuries too well.” Venom hissed within his ear in annoyance. “I tried everything, but the scaring is permanent. Nerves and muscles are still fine.”

Izuku was silent for a moment, contemplating his hand, before Venom spoke again in his blunt fashion. He seemed unusually agitated and angry about something right now, and Izuku wanted to ask, but didn’t want to get Venom more pissed off then before.

“The right side of your face, the cheek beneath the eye all the way to the chin is also scared.” Venom reported coldly. “Very foolish of you to get Todoroki to use his powers like that.”

“I had to help him! It was his power and not everyone...” Izuku began to speak, before Venom cut him off.

“I know how you feel, and while I appreciate it, that was too close to death for my taste.” Venom growled in irritation. “I want to live for as long as possible, and, despite being a helpless nerd, I’d like you to stay alive too.”

‘How bad was I damaged then?’ Izuku mentally asked, remembering Recovery Girl was nearby.

“Torn nerve cords, pulled muscles all around, severe burn scarring and I had to consume several organs for your short term survival.” Venom reported. “I’m still eating some snakes to heal what was done to you.”

Izuku wanted to be angry at him for consuming his organs again, but he couldn’t blame him. Todoroki was a powerful Quirk user. If they walked away without injuries, it would’ve been a miracle. He believed he deserved these injuries now, especially for almost putting Venom through that without asking him.

“For the record, I at first did not understand your desire to help Todoroki use his powers,” Venom stated, his voice slightly softened. “But, he is a powerful fighter and warrior. I think what you did was for the best. Despite almost dying, I do not regret following your lead.”

Izuku nodded slightly, still deep in thought, before Venom changed the subject.

“Do you want recovery girl to heal your hand, restore the skin and all?” Venom asked.

“No. I’ll keep it as is.” Izuku replied, testing his fingers and hands, balling it into a fist and reopening it. “I think it will help me know my limits.”

“Sure, that sounds reasonable.” Venom replied.

“So, I take it we lost?” Izuku asked.

Venom’s head shifted and extended from his shoulder, looking around for a moment, before shaking his head.

“No, by technicality we won.” Venom explained. “But, we are unable to fight. Even now your body is too fragile to go forward. Shoto will be allowed to continue in our place.”

“What’s happening now?” Izuku asked.

“Bakugou and Kirishima finished their battle.” Recovery Girl stated from her desk. “Now, your friend Tenya Iida will be going up against Todoroki.”

“We will sit things out. Like I said, I still need to heal more of your body.” Venom explained. “You’re still in a fragile state.”

Recovery Girl bristled at her seat at his explanation. She didn’t doubt Venom was trying his best to take care of his user and protect them, but damaging Izuku’s organs had to have long-term effects. She had run every test, looked over the medical scans and reports with a fine-toothed comb every chance she could. Izuku seemed to show no signs of losing any functions or health, but the idea of the organs breaking down and then being restored again was frightful to a medical expert of her caliber.

She said nothing, as the next cart of dishes were prepared for Venom and Izuku. She would keep an eye on things and try her best to prepare for any ill-effects this Quirk would bring, hoping she would be ready for the worst if it came to that. For now, though, she had no choice but to sit back and let Izuku chart his own course, with that strange Quirk of his.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
While Izuku lay in a stretcher, recovering and healing from his injuries and Venom going to town on his body, Bakugou and Kirishima were duking it out in the arena. Bakugou was livid and enraged, as always, this time by the fact he wouldn’t get to show the entire world his strength and triumph over Deku and his Gimp Suit, but Kirishima was pushing himself for a different reason. The Red-haired brawler remembered Venom’s words from back in the Bus, when he had stated their Quirks were not so different, that Kirishima shouldn’t look down on himself for his simple but practical power of Hardening. So, Ejiro thought, if Izuku could fight toe-to-toe and challenge Todoroki’s incredible, seemingly unstopped power, Kirishima could do the same with his simple hardening power.

Bakugou unleashed another Napalm-like blast at Kirishima’s face, the Crimson Riot Scion unperturbed, shrugging off the attack with a mighty slug to the Bakugou’s face. The Seemingly Eternally Enraged hellion backed away in surprise more then pain, blinking in surprise at Kirishima’s resistance to his all-out assault. Why wasn’t he backing down yet from the explosive assault?!

Kirishima took a combat stance, a cocky grin on his face as he clenched his fists, knuckles cracking in anticipation for the next attack. Bakugou activated his powers once more, creating two small explosions to push himself bac and create a dusk cloud in fornt of Kirishima, giving him time to fall back and catch his breath for a moment as he looked over the situation.

‘Not even fazed, ow the hell is he still standing?’ He thought in barely contained rage, as he looked over the situation before him.

“Like I said no dice my Wannabe IRA-pale.” Kirishima remarked with a grin, cracking his knuckles. “Your explosions do nothing!”

Bakugou stopped for a moment, a rare moment of calm in his fight, as the two waited for the other to make the move, as the Explosion-using Hero-in-training prepared another attack to throw at his foe.

“Bakugou for once has met his match!” Present Mic shouted above the crowds, as the Explosive user fought back the urge to yell back at him that he hadn’t even started yet. “Could this be the end for the Bomb Master?”

Bakugou wiped blood away from his cheek, as he coughed out some of the dirt from his mouth. Kirishima must’ve given him that cut during their first initial bout. He glared back at him with his usual foul expression, intending to pay him back in full for this. The Explosion-User jumped forward and charged again, as the crowd cheered them on for the fight to the finish and keep up the attack. Tetsutetsu and countless cheered them on, as the Silver-haired boy yelled to the Rock-Quirk user.

“Come on Kirishima, go for the chin!” Tetsutestu yelled to him, as his classrooms looked at him in surprise and shock, before some of them simply shrugged. Yesterday’s enemy was today’s friend.

Bakugou and Kirishima closed, the latter closing his fists and preparing for the battle, as Bakugou’s hands built up heat and prepared to exchange blows once more. Kirishima grinned arrogantly, as Bakugou kept his feral expression frozen and locked, not wanting to let Kirishima to know what he was planning. For this whole fight he had gone for the head and arms, some of the hardest points on Ejiro’s body. Kirishima took a hook-swing at Bakugou’s face, only for the Foul-Mouthed Hero-in-Training to duck under and swing an open palm at Kirishima’s ribs. A blast of hot fire tore outwards, striking Kirishima’s side, as he yelled out in pain, stumbling back as smoke rose from his side.

“You kept going on and on about hos hard your body is, how you can take anything I throw at you,” Bakugou barked at him, a murderous grin spreading across his face. “But as it turns out, enough punishment will break you to pieces!”

He lifted up both hands up, as Kirishima recoiled in horror and surprise. Even he hadn’t realized this weakness in his Quirk, this chink in his armor, so to speak. Still, he couldn’t let Bakugou win without a fight. If he went down now, it wouldn’t be the manly thing. He focused himself and ran full tilt at him, as Bakugou did the same. Kirishima tried to close, pulling back his fist to deliver a wicked haymaker, but Bakugou was ready, bracing his legs and arms, and unleashing blast after blast of Hellfire from his palms, rapid fire blasts of fire that pulverized Kirishima’s form.

The Rock-like Quirk user, already run ragged by the attacks and that Bakugou had unleashed in his face and across his body, was unprepared for Bakugou has pulled back his hand, smoke rising from it, as the glow built up, and he swung forward, like a wild, untrained punch.

“Now DIE!” He yelled at the top of his lungs, a massive fireball of an explosion tearing through half the arena and utterly knocking Kirishima off his feet, and out cold. Bakugou smacked his hands together, taking a deep breath.

He knew in a drawn out fight, Kirishima stood the greatest chance of both of them of losing steam during the fight when push came to shove. This just proved it. Still, he had still wanted to fight Deku, and he was still frustrated he had potentially lost out on proving himself better then that dweeb.

“Bakugou’s relentless carpet bombing proves too much for even the Rock-hard Kirishima!” Present Mic announced. “He moves onto the next match.”

Some cheers broke out amongst the crowd, the few that were willing to support him still after his brutal fight with Uraraka, while Tetsutestu’s booing and angered yells shouted out loudest of all. Bakugou looked at him in confusion for a moment, wondering if him and Weird-Hair, were twins or something, before brushing it off and taking his leave of the arena. With that done, Present Mic looked over the list of remaining students.

“With that, Bakugou, Todoroki, Iida and Tokoyami are our final four!” He announced, much to the excitement of the cheering crowds.

As Iida watched the fight from his perch, he turned to see a figure approaching him, and, with a smile, realized it was Midoirya, stumbling a bit, but seemingly alright.

“Ah, Midoriya, you’re feeling well again!” He said with a smile. “I was actually worried, you were gone so long.”

He noted the burn scars on Izuku’s arm and part of his face, but tried to say nothing, not wanting to rub salt in the wounds, so to speak, or make him feel self-conscious about anything. Izuku, however, was not bothered by them, though it would take time getting used to them now.

“Yeah, it took Venom awhile to patch me up after the fight.” He said with a smile, before giving a small grimace, as he lifted up his burned hand. “And it didn’t exactly work, right?”

“That’s alright, the scars I think will help in your work after. It will make you look...rugged and fierce.” Tenya said, trying to figure out a way to spin it for his friend. 

“Venom will be doing most of the work though.” Izuku said blankly, before giving a small chuckle to himself at Iida’s attempts to be positive. “I’m fine with the scars. You don’t need to walk on eggshells about it.”

“Eggs would be nice.” Venom remarked in his head, as Izuku grunted in annoyance, a non-verbal way to him not to talk now.

“Oh well, either way, I think your fight with Todoroki showed me a lot I can do.” Tenya replied, looking back at the ring as Cementoss worked his repairs on the central arena.

“So, did your brother Ingenium see any of the fights.”

“He’s at work down at Hosu. I’m certain he’ll watch it when he can.” Tenya remarked, as he cracked his fingers. “I’m up next, so I can’t talk long.”

“Oh, I got it. You win big, alright?” Midoriya asked, giving him a thumbs up.

“I didn’t plan on anything less.” Tenya said with a confident grin as he left for the arena.

After the set-up had ended, and the fighters had gotten in their last stretching and preparations for the fight to come, walked onto the field, both ready for what was to come. Tenya had it set in his mind to wind and get to the top. The family’s honor was riding on it, for him to get to the top in everything he could, regardless of what happened next. Shoto’s mind, however, was not as focused as his opponent. He was still trying to process much of what had happened when he and Midoriya had fought and exchange their blows. Could he even trust himself with his fire, could he reliably call upon it in the battle to come? His thoughts were interrupted, as he nearly jumped at the sound of the start horn, and the Voice of Present Mic yelling across the stadium.

“Start!”

He looked up at Tenya coldly and stamped his right foot in front of him, a cascade of ice shooting forward and rushing straight at Tenya. The Speed-boosted fighter had plenty of time to react, enhancing and empowering his jumps to send him over the ice wall sent right at him, and jumping directly at Shoto. It was a little similar to how Midoriya had countered and overcome Shoto’s attacks, but like him, Tenya didn’t have any hard counters against the ice.

‘His ice alone could devastate me, and if he starts using his fire, I won’t be able to win by any margin.’ He thought quickly to himself, as he assessed the situation. ‘So I have to rush him, and finish him as quickly as possible. No quarter.’

He swung his leg forward and swooping, powerful Cresent Kick aimed directly at Shoto’s head. The Ice/Fire user barely ducked away, the fires and heat from his Leg-Engines heating and warming his back as he looked up at Tenya in slight surprise, before he shot out a blast of spiked, ice crystals from his palm to the ground to try and slow Tenya down.

‘I have ten seconds before my engines stall. This has to end now.’ He thought, as he spun on the ball of his foot and swung his other leg in a downward, sweeping motioning, the heel connecting with Shoto’s back and sending him to the ground. Shoto could barely get on his hands and knees, before Tenya had grabbed him by the back of his uniform like he was a disobedient pup, and started dragging him forward, heading towards the end of the arena.

He ran forward at top speed, not stopping for a moment to thick or process what came next. He just had to run as fast as his engines could allow, and get him out of bounds. It wouldn’t be anything fancy, but it would give him the victory he so wanted, and that his family needed more then anything. Shoto didn’t even stiffen or try and stop him, simply going along with it. He wondered why his opponent didn’t seem bothered or want to try and stop him on any level, but he didn’t want to distract himself.

As he ran, he felt the heat in his left mufflers die down, and come to a stop, as the speed boost he had came to a sudden halt. He lurched in surprise, looking down, to see the exhaust pipes closed up by thick layers of ice over the six holes.

He glared down in fury, at Shoto’s move, and mostly at his own short-sightedness. “When did you…?!”

“When you were kicking me.” Shoto said simply, as he grabbed at Tenya’s arm before he could react, and sent waves of ice shooting up and covering his arm, and then the rest of his body, encasing his legs and most of his upper body in ice.

“Even when I prepared for it, I couldn’t dodge your Recipro-burst.” Shoto remarked, looking down at his left hand. “I won that by the skin of my teeth really. Good work.”

Iida did not at all feel like he had done a good job on any level really. Not even getting into the Top Three. He ground his teeth together in shame, as he shut his eyes tight. “Brother...”

Izuku watched with a whole mixture of emotions. While he didn’t want Shoto to lose, now that he had rediscovered what inspired and drove him to be a hero, he hadn’t wanted Iida to lose either. He looked disheartened, but said nothing, shaking his head. Endeavor sat in the stands, arms crossed, expression angry as ever, saying nothing, even as the fires built up around him, most of the crowd wisely keeping their distance from him, and trying to keep space between themselves and his flames. He had hoped that Shoto would start using his flames again, but seemed to fall back on habits, bad habits. Going all out again wasn’t an option, but still, he knew there were plenty of opportunities to use the power He had given his son. Why Shoto wouldn’t take it was beyond Endeavor.

Venom felt his strategy worked on paper, but he had underestimated his foe. Of course, he expected a teen to not be an expert warrior and know the best strategies and ways of executing their battle plans.

‘Even a few million years later, and I’m still learning.’ Venom thought with a small laugh to himself.

With Iida out, that left Tokoyami, Bakugou and Todoroki, acting in Izuku’s place, heading for the final two matches. Izuku was still slightly disappointed in himself for getting so wrapped up in the fight he almost burned and rotted out his own body again, but simply made his way back to the stands with the other students.

After getting thawed out and sent to Recovery Girl as well, Iida would join them. For now, Izuku would be the first to show up. Ochako was the first to notice him, excitedly smiling and jumping out of her seat as he approached.

“Deku! Oh it’s good you’re ok, I was super-worried!” She said, smiling brightly and getting within inches of his face.

Tokoyami followed, keeping his distance. “I was also rather concerned. It’s good to you’re okay.”

“Yeah, it was apparently pretty hairy.” Izuku remarked, trying to play it off, even as he blushed like a Tomato around Uraraka.

“Yeah too bad your Quirk’s way too scary, you’ll probably never get any...” Mineta began to speak, Venom ready to coat Izuku’s arm and throttle him, before Tsu’s tongue shot out and stuck in the side of head.

“Careful running your mouth Mineta, Kero.” She warned, as he yelped and struggled in vein to get loose, before he tongue snapped back into place. Venom had to make a note about keeping her close as well. “You did good, Izuku. Maybe a little too good given your bur...pushed yourself a little bit. Kero kero.”

“Yeah, I got a little wrapped up in a lot of things.” He remarked, scratching the back of his head.

Fumikage walked beside him, before putting a hand on his shoulder. Izuku turned in surprise, as the the Raven-headed boy looked at him intensly.

“My fight is next, but whenever the chance shows itself, I would like your advise on something.” Tokoyami said with a nod, before heading off. “That’s all.”

“Well, good luck out there.” Izuku said, as the others repeated the same general statement.

He sat down, and was greeted with an almost overwhelming amount of support and such from the other students and their worries about his scarring around his hand and face. He had made sure not get them to worry about it, telling them he didn’t mind it, but many seemed quite unnerved and bothered by it. Shoto showed up a few minutes, and almost froze in place seeing Izuku and his scars. He swayed for a moment, his eyes distant and unfocused, his fingers twitching at his side for a moment.

“Todoroki, are you ok?” Izuku slowly, as everyone looked at him in concern.

“Sorry.” He said, shaking slightly, as though he was shivering.

“Are you alright?” Tsuyu asked, putting a finger on her chin.

“Yeah, yeah. Sorry.” He mumbled, making his way to the seats, his eyes downcast, and seemingly somewhere else entirely as the other students looked at him with worry.

Venom appeared from Izuku’s shoulder, jaws and eyes shifting and forming into position, as it looked at Todoroki with his usual cold, near-unexpressive eyes.

“If you feel terrible about the scar, don’t.” Venom hissed to him. “We made the decision to go ahead with the fight. We both wanted victory, and what happened next was the result of our goals clashing.”

Todoroki nodded numbly, but said nothing, merely focused on the stadium below them. He wasn’t sure how Izuku could be so accepting of being denied his chance when he had been the won to win, even by technicality.

“I still can’t fight anyway, Venom’s still doing repairs on my liver and large intestine.” Izuku explained.

Denki cringed slightly, turning a light shade of green. “Jesus.”

Izuku gave a small chuckle, as he merely shrugged it off. It probably did sound insane and disgusting to have a creature in his body toying with his organs, but he was too used to having him with him now.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Across Japan, in the darkened corners of Hosu city, one of the Pro Heroes stood outside one of the many stench-ridden, darkened alleyways, brought there by reports of a mysterious figure lurking about, matching reports and descriptions of a certain villain on the loose in Japan. Someone who needed to be brought in immediately. It would be a hard slog, but it was one the Turbo-Hero Ingenium was sure he could handle.

“Another fake hero shows up here?” A hoarse voice hissed from the darkness of the alley. 

“Who is there? Don’t move, you might be wanted for questioning, understand?” He declared to the shadows, marching into the Alleyway, despite every hair on the back of his neck telling him to turn and leave. As a hero, he could not. What would Tenya and the rest of the Iida family think of him?

“You’re just another fake. Your blood will help make a better society.” The voice rasped coldly, suddenly behind Tensei. “A stronger society!”

He barely had time to react before cold steel blades stabbed into his back. He stiffened and yelled in pain and agony, before blacking out. He barely had time to move, before he fell to the ground in agony. His phone fell from it’s hold, as blood pooled from his armor. The figure approached, smashing the phone under his heel. Chains and pieces of armor clicking as he approached, a long Katana blade drawn.

The figure brought stabbed the blade in deep, before removing, retreating into the darkness, and giving the blade a twirl as he stood over the fallen body of the so-called “hero” below him. The figure’s long, slithering tongue extended from his thin, emaciated face, licking the blade clean, as his bloodshot eye glowed with malice.

“Fame...money...power...these all should be nothing to true heroes.” He rasped, hearing the sirens and calls for back up, not caring at all until he completed his mission. “Only he is….The only one allowed to finally kill me, is All Might himself!”

By time police forces and paramedics arrived, the mysterious attacker was gone, leaving only the broken and bloodied body of the Hero behind him, and much, much more blood pooling and spread across the walls in the attacker’s wake. Unfortunately, this was not the first attack on the Heroes to go down. This was identical to multiple other attacks across Japan. He struck suddenly and brutally soon after the Jet Black vigilante left, attacking heroes with ferocity and brutality that equaled the other vigilante, but driven by something far deeper then huger. His was at work, a work that had yet to be finished.

It was the work of Stain, Hero Killer.

And he had only just begun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I originally intended for this to cover the battles all the way up to the Bakuou vs Todoroki match, but decided to cut it off at Stain, as his introduction just helps wrap things up with a malefic air, so to speak. The Hero-Killer arc is something I'm pumped for, as it's one of my favorite Arcs and has one of my favorite fight scenes. I hope to do it, and my equally favorite training arc during internships. That one will be VERY different as well.
> 
> Special thanks to read Andrew Hensley for the idea that Venom couldn't completely heal Izuku's burn scars. I really liked the idea, and thought It would work beautifully well. Plus, it will help Izuku stand out and look way cooler in later chapters.
> 
> Recent events are hectic, to say the least, so stay safe and don't get hurt out there. If you want to protest. Please don't loot if it can be helped, and if you're not gonna protest, stay safe too. I don't like everyday people getting hurt.


	15. The Top Spot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The final battle commences, as the last two contestants see who will go to the top.

The next fight to come was another for Bakugou, this time against Tokoyami. Normally, Tokoyami had been able to overwhelm nearly everyone that got in his path during his battles with Momo and Mina. Now, the tide had completely changed. The power of Dark Shadow seemed almost incapable of even laying a finger on Bakugou throughout their entire battle. In the first few seconds of the match, Tokoyami had hoped to defeat right then and there, sending Dark Shadow winding and snaking around to attack him right away, but Bakugou had used his explosions to keep him at bay.

Tokoyami had been lucky to keep him away for long as he had, but now he was starting to worry. Dark Shadow was having more and more difficulty going up against him. The powerful explosions Bakugou unleashed were too bright and powerful for his own Quick to counter. Combined with Bakugou’s almost limitless aggression and stamina, it was almost impossible to get him to stop for even a second so Dark Shadow could recharge.

“Such bloodlust...” Tokoyami managed, after Dark Shadow’s claw was batted away with another blast.

Uraraka looked on in worry for him, wiping some sweat from her forehead. “Those explosions. I don’t think this is a good match up for him.”

“He can win this as long as Bakugou doesn’t figure out his weakness.” Izuku said, focused on the match below.

Uraraka wasn’t so sure, but said nothing. Venom likewise, doubted it. Of course, he was always weary of Bakugou after their battle during the bomb retrieval test, but even so, The Symbiote had doubts of whether Tokoyami could pull it off. Bakugou had the strength of body, mind and Quirk that Tokoyami lacked in the first.

Bakugou flew through the air, using his explosions to get airborne and stay out of Dark Shadow’s reach, as he flew towards Tokoyami at high speed. Dark Shadow ballooned forward, claws out-stretched, ready to snatch him up, before Bakugou threw his left forward and fired another blast of hot fire in Dark Shadow’s face, who let a small tear drop from his ethereal eyes in pain. Bakugou flipped up and other Dark Shadow and Tokoyami’s head, as the Ethereal Quirk struggled to grab him in vain, Bakugou merely firing another blast behind his back to cover his rear.

He flipped over and landed several feet behind Tokoyami who looked over his shoulder in surprise. Bakugou held out both hands in front of him, and with a venomous smile, waited as Dark Shadow turned to intercept, as a bright flash of smoke and fire erupted from his hand and surged towards Tokoyami and his Quirk. Smoke and dust once more rose from the arena, obscuring everything around the two.

Present Mic shifted around his chair and grunted in annoyance, trying to get a better look at the fight results. “Always with the dust and debris man. I can’t see anything!”

As he spoke, the dust began to clear, Bakugou braced atop Tokoyami, who was thrown on the ground, his arms pinned by Bakugou’s gym shoes, a hand clasped over his beak, as Bakugou raised the other palm menacingly.

“So, you figured it out?” Tokoyami managed, glaring up at him in annoyance and pain.

“Not hard to figure out, but you had a bad match-up. Sucks to suck.” Bakugou managed, grinning wildly. “Give. I’ve got checkmate.”

Dark Shadow rose from Tokoyami’s back, smaller and more demure then before, about to attack again, before Bakugou created a bunch of tiny explosions across his palm and finger-tips, Dark Shadow sulking and backing away in fright. With nothing else left to do, Tokoyami merely sighed. 

“I submit.” He managed through the pain and his own damaged pride. He once more wondered how Venom could’ve worked in this situation. While he was weak to heat, the close combat power would’ve helped greatly.

Bakugou released him and stood up, as Midnight flipped the flag in Bakugou’s direction.

“Looks like Bakugou wins another match!” Present Mic shouted, as the crowds cheered and yelled. “It looks like the last two in the fight are Todoroki and Bakugou going forward.”

Bakugou glared at the stands, his eyes filled with almost as much fire and fury as the explosions his Quirk gave him, as Todoroki looked back at him coldly. Again, Bakugou thought nothing of Todoroki. He was merely a placeholder for the real one he should be fighting, the real opponent he would have to face. If Icy-Hot was going to get in his way, he’d have to bash him down too, no holding back.

Iida appeared from the back-workings of the Stadium, as the others watched the fight in amazement. Tokoyami had so easily wiped the floor with them and tossed them around, and all that was needed to win was light? Momo wanted to slap herself. Making shields and weapons, and all she needed to win the fight was a flashlight or strobe-light. It made her pathetic showing even worse now that she had watched his whole fight. Class-B, meanwhile, was sharing notes, and more then that, bitter and disappointed words among themselves over Class-A's overwhelming showing.

“Looks like you made a smart move, picking a rivalry with that guy of all Class-A.” Kendo gave Neito a pat on the back of head.

“It was a bad Quirk match-up. Means nothing.” He said with a dismissive gesture.

Iida approached and sat down, as the crowd cheers grew louder and louder with every second. He was still disappointed, Izuku and Uraraka could tell, that he had lost and not gotten the chance to win, but he was determined to put that behind him.

“Observe and learn from them, and we can come back at them.” Iida advised Uraraka and Izuku, reflecting his attitude. He wasn’t sure Izuku needed it, but his classmate had over-taxed himself, and it was important to learn in every situation.

As he stood there, Iida began to vibrate and shake as Izuku and Uraraka gasped in shock. “What is that?!”

He looked down at his pocket nonchalantly, and pulled out his phone. “Oh, I’m getting a call, it must be my mother. Hold on, I’ll be back.” 

He stood up and stepped out as quickly as he could, getting away from the rest of his class and the cheering crowds so he could hear clearly. Once he was far enough away from the yelling, jeering and shouts of excitement, he was about to answer.

“Mother, I apologize, I wasn’t able to win. I apologize for the disappoint upon the family I...” He began to explain, before her worried, rushed voice interrupted him.

“No, no, Iida, Iida dear, it’s not that at all.” She struggled to get out, as though she was trying to keep her thoughts and emotions in order, as he stiffened at the sound. His mother usually didn’t get this worked up. “It’s your brother….a villain got him.”

Iida stiffened, as still as a statue, as he gripped his phone in a shaking hand. He almost couldn’t believe. Everything else, the backgorund noise and such from the crowds cheering disappeared from his ears. No, no this couldn’t be right. Ingenium was one of the best, brightest of heroes. No villain could’ve gotten him. Injured him or killed him. No, this had to be a mistake.

But he found the words catching in his throat. Iida just couldn’t muster the words to ask his mother if she was right, if she was mistaken. He simply stood there, listening as she described everything she knew in horrid detail.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
At the scene of the crime, there were not much words or noises in or around, most of the police too spooked or terrified by the sight of the blood before and Ingenium’s mangled body that had just been carried away. Even after, there was so much blood gore smeared about, many of the newer cops were almost knocked out in shock by the sight of it all. Others gathered evidence, as the rest made the perimeter and took witness statements. Far from the crime scene, there was not much noise, the whole city seemingly falling silent from the horrific crime that had occurred here.

On one of the great buildings, knelt a figure overlooking it all from a nearby building. The figure had an emaciated face, covered in a bandage-like mask, his various knives and blades holstered and sheathed all around him, as he looked down with bloodshot eyes, 

“You fools are blind,” He hissed to himself, focusing down on the streets below with his latest attack. “Clinging to these idiots mired in hypocrisy and the pursuit of vanity, these False Heroes.”

He opened his skull-like face, the skin spread thin-over his head, as his tongue lapped out of his maw, licking his mouth, before he became aware of a figure behind him. The person had been dead silent, almost to the point he wouldn’t have noticed them. But he had been training his senses as well as his strength for his role as a Vigilante, and then a “Hero-Killer”, as the Media Propaganda had taken to calling him, and even this being could not escape his notice, no matter how they were. He was simply better. If he wasn't he would've failed and been captured. Or ended up dead.

He snapped to, turning and swinging his katana outwards, bringing it to a stop inches from the figure’s face, turning his bloodshot eyes to face the intruder, his expression curious but very, very murderous, the latter a usual given his self-declared line of work.

“So, we meet at last Hero Killer, Stain was it?” The ghostly figure asked as the dark purple and abyssal black smoke took form into a more humanoid shape, two thin, yellow eyes glaring at him. “Though I see you are not the most welcoming of types.”

Stain did not know what to make of the figure before him, keeping his sword on him, but signaling for him to speak quickly. The ghost figure nodded slightly.

“There’s no need for violence, I think, when we are on the same side.” The Ghost responded. “You’re already quite infamous, and I believe we can help each other greatly, if I could only have a moment of your time?”

Stain regarded the strange figure before him quizzically, tilting his head slightly, before giving his blade a twirl and sheathing it behind him. He stood from his perch, and gave a short jump, landing in front of the being.

“I have no time to waste, I have an important mission, and I won’t let anyone distract me, got it?” He said sternly, as he carefully put away his katana. 

“I assure you, it won’t,” The wraith-like being replied, expanding forward to encompass the building. “Step right in, my Quirk will take us where we need to be.”

Stain was still uncertain of this stranger and what exactly he planned, but he did not shy away from the idea of more assistance in purging the False Heroes. If this Wraith and whatever other figures around him wished to help and bring about a purer society, Stain would accept it in full.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The arena was silent with excitement as the final match was prepared. Midnight and Cementoss both knew this battle would be an especially tough one for the surrounding stadium. Both Todoroki and Bakugou were capable of horrendously powerful attacks against the other students, and going right up against each other would only make the situation more tense. Midnight had ordered medical personnel and droids placed on stand-by for both them, and extras to back up the personnel further.

Even with all this, she had the nagging feeling that it just wouldn’t be enough if the two went all-out, or, in Todoroki’s case, all-out without half of his power. If worse came to worse, she could always step in, but with how quickly the two would escalate a fight, she wasn’t sure if her reactions would come quick enough.

With all the hype and tension around, Todoroki had retreated into the waiting and prep rooms below to get himself mentally and physically ready. He couldn’t help but feel a lot of pressure to do well in this. He now had his mother on his mind, when he had shunted her into the back of his mind so long ago. He was wondering how things had changed now. Would reaching the top still make his father’s tool, or would he be living up to his mother’s legacy? Izuku himself had helped awaken these feelings. Him and that strange, alien ability of his. Something about it didn’t feel like a normal Quirk, but Todoroki didn’t feel the need to pry. And not only that, but he also felt as though he’d have to now perform just as well, with him acting in Izuku’s place as he healed his injuries.

‘So much to do and process over,’ He thought to himself, shaking his head. ‘I’m not sure what to think with my mother, much less...’

His thoughts were interrupted by a heavy, loud kick to the door, as someone forcibly smashed the door open. Shoto turned slightly, not raising an eyebrow, as Bakugou stood there, looking at him in confusion and his usual fury.

“Huh?”

The two looked at each other, Todoroki his usual calm and deadpan self, Bakugou trying to process what he was seeing.

“What the hell, why are you in here?” He demanded, before leaning out the doorway and looking at the sigh. “Ah shit this is preproom two!”

Shoto turned back to looking at his own hand, shaking his head slightly, as he went back to his thoughts. Bakugou’s eye twitched with annoyance, before he began to swagger over to his table, baring his teeth in an animalistic manner.

“Wrong room or not, it’s rude to ignore your opponent, so I’m just gonna say this once for ya,” Bakugou said, voice low, before he slammed his palm on the table, creating an explosion in front of Shoto. “You better bring everything you got Icy-Hot!”

Shoto looked at the smoking pit Bakugou and had left with mild shock, before looking at his left hand. “Midoriya said something similar during our fight actually, about giving it my all.”

He looked at him from the side, never blinking. “You were friends with him for a while, right? Was he always like this?”

Bakugou’s face flashed with confusion and anger, unsure how to take such a question. He seemed confused, angered and even insulted by the question that hit him. Shoto seemed uncaring for his strange reaction. He ground his teeth together, fists shaking, before he lashed out with his leg at the table and kicked it over. 

“Who the hell cares?!” He shouted, as Shoto watched in surprise at his reaction.

Bakugou glared down at him, thinking over the first fight and how Deku had managed to outsmart him and defeat him in the first fight. “All his stupid speeches...And you! Your family, all your feelings and shit, who cares?! Come at me with your fire!”

He turned on his heel and stormed out the room, barking over his shoulder. “I’ll crush anything you throw at me!”

After the prep time was over, the two stood in the center of the stadium, the spectators mostly silent, on edge and ready to see who would come out on top this. The rest of the students watched the as the two squared off.

“At last, the final battle among the best of the best of the First Years will be decided!” Present Mic declared, hyping up the crowds. “In this final match, it’s Shoto Todoroki, in the place of another, and Katsuki Bakugou!”

Shoto looked on, his expression cold and indecisive, as Bakugou gave him a murderous grin that would’ve made anyone’s blood run cold.

“Begin!”

Todoroki did not hesitate in his first attack, slamming his right palm onto the ground, a massive wall of ice shooting upwards and ramming towards Bakugou before he could even blink. Bakugou began throwing out explosion after explosion, digging his way through the ice, as it closed in and encompassed the area around him. The crowd stood in shocked silence, Godzillo and other heroes raising an eyebrow in surprise.

“Do we already have a winner here?” Present Mic announced in surprise.

“Don’t be so sure yet.” Aizawa remarked, as a distant, booming sound echoed from within the ice.

Everyone watched in surprise, before the surface of the ice within the ring, closer to Todoroki, before an area of the ice glowed orange, and exploded outwards, smoke rising from it, as Bakugou stepped out, grinding his teeth in rage, shaking in anger, as he marched forward, hands smoking from heavy use of his Quirk. The crowd ooed and awed in surprise and wonder as Bakugou simply walked away from the ice, smoke clearing in his wake.

“Man, he tunneled through the ice like a mole? Weird, but cool.” A crowd member remarked.

Todoroki started to shoot another blast of ice straight at him, before Bakugou fired two blasts of explosive fire from his palm and flipped over, jumping over, before grabbing Todoroki by the shoulder of his uniform and hair, and slammed down on his feet.

“Don’t you dare look down on me!” Bakugou shouted, as he threw Todoroki with all his might, adding a small explosion at the end to send Todoroki a little further away.

Before he could even get close to the edge of the ring, a small wall of ice shot up behind him, as he landed on it with a thud, before a massive semicircle rose up further behind and around him, as he caught his bearings and prepared for the next attack to come. The ice extended outwards, rushing towards Bakugou again, as he jumped forward and rushed at Shoto again. He extended his right hand back, smoke rising again from his palm, as Shoto waited for the attack to come. Bakugou lunged forward, the explosion harmlessly going off by Todoroki’s shoulder, as he lashed out and grabbed him by the left hand.

Endeavor grinned with excitement, waiting for his son to finally do it again, to unleash his flames again, while Bakugou snarled at him, waiting for him to finally do this.

“Use it.” Grunted Endeavor, as he watched.

Tongues of fire gathered and burned along Shoto’s left most side of his head, and his hand, before he stopped them totally, and threw Bakugou away, back towards the ice wall he had been using himself moments ago. Shoto back away back to the crater in the ice Bakugou had made, as pieces of ice crumbled and fell from the top of it, as Aizawa analyzed the fight.

“His attacks are mostly the same, but it’s strange, they’re lacking the focus and energy he had before,” he remarked as he watched on. “After the fight with Midoriya, it looks like Todoroki’s lost his drive.”

Bakugou glared at him with his usual expression of barely contained rage and anger, as he rose to his feet, smaller level explosions tearing through the air around his palms, as he shook with a rage that even Godzillo was disturbed at. It was no the reaction of an angered man, or even a child, but a feral beast hungry for something he was being, so far, denied.

“I ain’t good enough, strong enough, for your flames, is that it!?” He shouted to the Ice/Fire user. “You’ll regret making me look stupid here!”

He stood straighter, glaring him right in the eye as he clenched his fists tighter, everyone looking on in shock as he continued his rant.

“I want the win to beat all wins!” He screamed at the top of his lungs. “You shouldn’t even be here! I should be fighting Deku! If you’re going to go all out on him but hold back with me, there’s no point in you being here! Just get outta my face!”

Izuku and Uraraka watched him in shock, the rest of the audience speechless as they heard his words. No one was sure how to react to what he was saying. It was what they had all been thinking, going into the fight, but no one had thought that Bakugou of all people would take it seriously, or take it as an insult when one of the fighters didn’t measure up. Venom was even surprised, for once silent as Bakugou ranted at the other fighter in rage. His attitude, of always reaching for the top, never stopping, and wanting the best from everyone he fought, it would’ve made him the prefect Symbiote, or the perfect Host. If he didn’t feel so attached to Izuku, both of them runts, he might’ve made the switch.

‘Perhaps. But he’s too wild, and the genetic with Izuku is prefect.’ The blackened Symbiote thought as he watched the fight through his host. ‘But Bakugou’s attitude is, somewhat, commendable.’

Shoto stood there for a moment, absolutely still as a statue, as he absorbed Bakugou’s words, shaking his head slightly.

‘Ever since that fight with Midoriya, I don’t know what to do going forward.’ He thought, glaring back at his opponent. ‘Am I correct in what I’m doing? Should I even be in his place?’

He glanced down at his left hand for a moment, as Bakugou came running at him again, ready to continue their brawl, before a voice from the audience rattled him and drew his attention for a moment.

“Shoto! Don’t lose! Do your best!” Midoriya shouted from the stands, as Shoto looked up at him in silent shook, unable to even think of what to say.

“The damn nerd is at it again.” Bakugou grumbled to himself, glancing at the stands in irritation, before focusing back at his foe. He unleashed a massive explosion under his feet, propelling himself upwards, and into the air, flying at Todoroki like a missile, whose expression changed from uncertainty and doubt, to steely-eyed determination in a split second. No matter his doubts, he had to win this, here and now.

Flames erupted once more from Todoroki’s left, much stronger and more sure in character then before. Bakugou grinned in satisfaction, spinning in midair, as the smoke and ash gathered around him in an intense funnel cloud, prepared for one of his most powerful moves he had developed so far. If Todoroki gave it his all, against Bakugou’s most powerful move, it would be the ultimate show of power between the two, the heat already melting and breaking down the ice near them as the power built up in both of them

“Bakugou used the same power he fired off in his fight with Uraraka, and added further spin and velocity to turn himself into a living artillery shell.” Aizawa stated, as the two sped towards the final collision.

Bakugou hit Todoroki dead-on, as an explosion tore through the arena, ripping apart the ground beneath the two in a cataclysmic explosion of sound and fury, as heat and flame tore through the air, creating a massive mushroom cloud that ballooned up into the air, the roar so loud, that, even after it’s end, most of the audience still felt a high-pitched ringing in their ears, that took several seconds to wear off. Even Godzillo, no stranger to loud sounds himself, was momentarily deafened by the sudden crack of thunderous, explosive power released in that moment.

“But it seems Todoroki isn’t using the fire blast he did in his fight with Midoriya.” Aizawa stated, as Bakugou pulled himself from the broken and craggy ground, looking on in shock. “He snuffed out his flames at the last second.”

The arena fell silent yet again, as Bakugou got to his feet, looking on in shock at Todoroki, unconscious and out of bounds, completely beat by the Howitzer Impact. Bakugou’s eyes widened in shock, as he shook his head, Todoroki’s body slumping over in the ruined chunks and crumbling remains of the ice he had raised and created around himself. He didn't need Aizawa's word to echo in his ears like that. He could feel the heat died down before impact. He had hoped against hope that it was him overcoming the flames and coming out on top. Such blind hope was foolish, Bakugou could see that now. He had desired a victory to top them all, but was left with little in his mind to show for it.

“Hey! Get up! Quit messing around!” Bakugou shouted, looking equal parts desperate as he was angry. “This win doesn’t mean anything unless you give it everything you’ve got!”

Shoto’s form did not all, Bakugou merely standing there in stunned silence, Midnight tear a part of her costume’s arm off, prepared for him to fly off the handle and needing to be restrained. Instead, he merely stood there, as if he was too confused and too angry to process what to do next. Izuku could see it in Bakugou’s eyes just how enraged and powerless he was at not being able to go up at Shoto at 100%, but being unable to do anything now, powerless against whatever had forced Shoto to shut down his fire powers at the last second before the final impact.

He stood there, still as a statue, everyone watching him in concern. After how violent, loud and brutal he had been in the past fights, him not saying a word somehow was more chilling and terrifying then any yells or threats he could’ve spouted off. All Might looked at him in worry, reminded of his behavior earlier, after he had lost the battle with Midoriya and Uraraka, and how hurt and enraged he had been. Even Aizawa seemed taken aback by how his student was acting, leaning back slightly in his chair in surprise.

“Shoto Todoroki is out of bounds!” Midnight announced.

“With that, Bakugou is our winner!” Present Mic announced, as the crowds broke into half-hearted cheers.

Bakugou merely turned and left the arena without a word, still strangely quiet, Izuku and Venom watching him in shock at his out-of-character behavior. Never had they seen him fall so quiet and wordless before. It was as though the fight had taken something out of him. Whatever was up with him, neither could guess.

All that was left now was to collect the rewards and wrap things up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've found I kinda like writing Bakugou a lot recently. All that fire and drive never gets old.
> 
> Regarding the difference in reaction to his loss in Canon vs here, I'll cover that later, but Bakugou here is overwhelmed by a lot of things, like not fighting Deku, Shoto Holding back, believing he hasn't earned his win, etc. He'll return to his usual bloodthirsty self next chapter, but I wanted his reaction to go somewhere else here.


	16. The Name

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku and Venom pick out a name for their couple pet project, as other forces work in the background.

Izuku, along with most of the winners in the final battles, were herded onto the center stage, as podiums were raised above the stadium grounds, for the first, second and third places. He and Shoto would share second, given the odd nature of Shoto’s “victory” over him, as Tokoyami and Iida would share third. As they were being taken to the center of the stage, Iida finally returned from the phone call with his mother, looking shaken and pale. Izuku was about to ask him what was wrong, before he spoke after several minutes of silence, as though trying to find his thoughts.

“I must apologize profously. A family emergency has come up,” he said, taking a deep breath to collect his thoughts. “I...my brother has been attacked by a villain.”

Izuku looked on in surprise, as Tokoyami struggled to find the words to council him. Heroes getting injured on the job was nothing new, but Ingenium was a high-ranking, powerful hero all his own, at least in the Top 20, in terms of crimes solves and popularity. If a Villain did manage to take him out, even injure him, that Villain had to be a great threat indeed.

‘I hope his brother is ok.’ Izuku thought with worry, as he and Tokoyami made their way down.

“It’s probably bad.” Venom remarked within his mind. “No one looks like that if the villain didn’t do a number on him.”

Izuku tried to ignore the Symbiote’s words as the two made their way down to the center. Already there was Shoto standing on the Second place podium after being checked up on (again) by Recovery Girl, while Bakugou sat, hunched over, his knees drawn to his chest, looking down at his boots. It was a strangely calm sight for the usually fiery and rage-filled fighter of Class-1A. Izuku almost wanted to stop and stare in surprise at him for a moment, before shaking the feeling off and continuing on. He had was surprised, as was everyone else, at how calm and morose he seemed, seemingly absorbed in his own thoughts for a moment.

“Is Bakugou alright?” Kaminari asked to the others, looking to the others in the class. “Like, did he burn a brain cell or something?”

Everyone else in the class wanted to make a biting remark about the hypocrisy, but decided against it. After all, most of them agreed with the basic idea. Something was wrong with Bakugou and how he was acting. It was just too weird for many of those in the stands after seeing him out for blood earlier.

Izuku, after making his way there, stood awkwardly among the others, Todoroki impassive. Despite what Aizawa and Present Mic had decided upon, it didn’t feel right for him to be standing here with the rest of the winners, those who had actually done the work to win and get close the top, while he had to sit out and let Venom patch up his body.

“Don’t doubt yourself, you fought Todoroki to a draw. We desreve to be here.” Venom stated within his body, squirming form his limbs into his chest. “We deserve this.”

Fire works went off, Venom immediately dropping the conversation to hiss within his ind in anger, Izuku stiffening and his arms shaking slightly as the explosions went off over head. Midnight walked through the center stage, gesturing to the top winners of the tournament with a smile to the crowds.

“Now, let’s move on, to the Award Ceremony!” She announced, as she gestured to the Third place. “Tokoyami and Iida would both be in third, but Tenya Iida had to leave early for a family emergency. We hope you understand.”

Everyone was silent for a moment, before she continued on.

“Now, for the metals!” Midnight announced. “Presenting them this year is someone you all should know!”

A powerfully built figure rushed from the skies above, as she continued on.

“I AM…!”

“He’s everyone’s hero, a true Champion...” She continued, before the figure slammed into the ground to her left, as she looked on in stunned silence.

“HERE WITH THE METALS!” All Might shouted, before turning in an apologetic manner to Midnight, quietly speaking to her. “Sorry about the interruption.”

He approached Tokoyami first, taking a Third place medal, as Present Mic spoke to the crowds.

“The First years did so great, even All Might couldn’t keep from watching them!”

He placed the metal around Tokoyami’s neck, as he bowed his head to make it easier. “Congrats Tokoyami, you’re a strong one!”

Tokoyami nodded to him, his expression inscrutable. “You honor me too highly, sir.”

All Might pulled him into a deep, bear hug, as Tokoyami’s eyes widened in shock. He wasn’t sure how to take the hug from one of the greatest heroes in the world. He stood there stiffly, as All Might gave him some wisdom to carry with him.

“Relying your Quirk alone won’t be enough to overcome bad Quirk match-ups,” All Might stated to him. “Hone that innate strength to open a whole world of opportunity.” 

He pulled away, as Tokoyami looked down at the medal, nodding to himself absentmindedly. He had nothing else to say. “Understood.”

All Might nodded to him, giving him a thumbs up and encouraging nod, before moving onto the two second placers He went first to Todoroki, handing him the medal and placing it over his head. Despite the great win and the award that came with it, Todoroki still seemed distant and stoic, even saddened in a way. Izuku eyed him slightly, but said nothing, not wanting to be too nosy.

“Todoroki kid, congratulations.” All Might boomed.

“Thank you.” He remarked simply.

“Why’d you hold back in your final match though? You could’ve gone so much further and done so much more with full power at your side.” All Might stated.

“It was my match against Midoriya, I think.” Todoroki said, looking down at the ground, shaking his head slightly. “I..I feel like I’ve lost my way. I need to clear somethings up first, before I can move forward, I think.”

Again, All Might pulled him into a warm, supportive hug, patting him on the back, Todoroki hardly reacting to emotional support All Might gave him. The mountain of a man held him for a few minutes, as he gave advise to him as well.

“That’s a new look on your face, so say no more.” The Number 1 stated softly. “Whatever you need to do, you can do it. Just don’t be afraid to asl your friends for help.”

He pulled away, and grabbed the other second place medal in his meaty hand, Midoriya straightening himself in preparation for the award and what All Might would tell him.

“Midoriya, the Second placed Second place winner, you’ve got a lot of power in that Quirk of yours.” All Might said, putting the medal around his neck. “Learn to control your power output, and the fight, and you’ll smash anything in your path.”

Again, All Might pulled him into a massive bear hug, Izuku still surprised that his idol was going this far, Venom seemingly struck silent for once, as he patted him on the back, and moved on. Izuku looked down at the medal, still unsure of how much he deserved it, before All Might gave him a thumbs up.

“And don’t doubt yourself. You got here, don’t lose faith in yourself so easily.” He stated in a more subdued voice, before moving onto Bakugou.

Izuku nodded slightly, coming to agree with him. It still didn’t feel right, but All Might and Venom both were right. He had made it here, of course that had to count for something. Even if it felt like Venom was doing most of the leg work.

“Do not think like that.” Venom admonished, his voice softer and less feral and savage then what Izuku was used to hearing from him. “Our people have no art, history or the like as you would understand it. All we have are our hosts, the beings we join with, to forge through the cold and unforgiving cosmos with. The bond between a Klyntar and its host is sacred. They give our lives context and our existence meaning. They give us history. All we have are our hosts to tell us who we are. You have done that for me.”

‘I...Venom...’ Izuku was unsure even how to respond to what the Symbiote had told him.

“I have been rethinking how I approach many things, my Squad, my leaders, my ideals,” Venom explained. “You have given me much to think over, before and during this whole battle. We will speak of it later, however.”

Izuku nodded slightly, as he turned to All Might holding the first place medal for Bakugou, still squatted on the first place stand, looking disapprovingly at the medal in question. Izuku was still thrown off by how he was acting, as All Might nervously tried to coax out a response from him.

“Well, you did it, you lived up to your promise of first place.” All Might said, his usual infallible smile faltering slightly, trying not to get a violent outburst from Bakugou, which even the Top Hero admitted might be impossible to do.

“All Might, this win...” Bakugou began quietly, as he stood up, clearing his throat. “Doesn’t mean shit! I didn’t get to fight the real Second Place winner, and his stand-in held back on me! What’s the point in winning if I can’t recognize this win myself?!”

Half of his class breathed a sigh of relief, while the majority only sighed in exasperation. It appeared Bakugou wasn’t troubled or hurt in anyway at all. He was just being his normalself. Tokoyami sighed, shaking his head.

“Bakugou, quit acting like an uncaged animal in front of the best heroes in the country.” He muttered, shaking his head.

“Well, if that’s the case, I must say I’m impressed. Few can continuously go for the top like.” All Might remarked, seemingly unbothered by his outburst, before taking out the medal. “So take this, think of it as a scar, so you never forget what you’re shooting for.”

“I told you I don’t…!” Bakugou began, before All Might practically jammed it onto his neck, the Explosion-user falling into an angered, stunned silence, hands shaking slightly. He glared over at Izuku for a moment, narrowing his eyes. Yes, to never forget what he was going for.

Izuku looked at him nervously for a moment, before All Might’s voice drew everyone’s attention. 

“Don’t leave quite yet! Don’t forget, that anyone here could be standing on these stages today!” He announced to the whole gathered crowd. “Encouragement, competition, pushing each other. That not only is what makes learning and sports great and nail-bitting,but the groundwork of everything a hero is!”

“The sprouts of today will grow into the heroes of tomorrow!” He finished his statement, pointing a finger to the skies and heavens. “In that Spirit, let’s have one final cheer!”

From across Japan, in the dingy bar room were the League of Villains hid, Shigaraki watched the final act with narrowed eyes from behind his Hand-Mask, eyes brimming with cold, hatred, as he studied the entire scene. In his Master’s lab meanwhile, Riot slowly ran his long tongue over his fangs, tapping his claws against the cell walls, hardly able to contain the excitement to fight, and butcher all of them, either soon, or when they were older.

Children weren’t as filling in his mind, but they made good, light snakes. And throw in the traitor Venom…

The entire crowd, of the students, heroes and spectators, however, were more focused on the here and now, the bright sunny skies and full clouds above them, rather then any terror the villains might have planned for the future. With a final cheer, everyone’s voice rang out.

“Plus...”

“Thanks for the hard work!” All Might shouted, cutting them all off.

Midnight sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose, before correcting him. “We’re supposed to say Plus Ultra. It’s the school thing.”

“Oh. Well, I mean, they did work hard, so...” All Might muttered sheepishly, laughing nervously.

It wasn’t long for the groups to split off and head for the snackbars, pick up any food and drinks, as Izuku made his way to the vending machine, getting a large Hershey's to hold Venom over before they got some nachos, as the two talked to each other.

“So what inspired this strange in direction, Ven?” Izuku asked, as he pulled the chocolate out, and unwrapped it. 

“Your fight with Todoroki didn’t just help him, but it changed some of my views on things,” Venom explained. “I guess helping the Icy-Hot guy out was better then letting him hold onto the chip on his shoulder.”

‘So parents and children trying to eat each other isn’t the best idea anymore?’ Izuku asked sarcastically, smiling to himself as he ate the bar quickly, both to get some fuel in Venom, and to avoid it melting on his uniform before he could leave.

“Probably not.” Venom hissed. “Though if we encounter any criminals I still reserve the right to bite their heads off and suck the brains out.”

‘I didn’t say you couldn’t do that anymore.’ Izuku thought with a roll of his eyes, as he waved to some of the Class-B students, who surprisingly returned the gesture nicely. 

Izuku wanted to ask about the intrusive thoughts he had been having recently, but decided against it. They were just thoughts, and he had had the good sense not to act on them at all, but it still bothered him. Venom had just rethought probably everything about his views and ideals, and Izuku didn’t want to pile anything more on his plate until he felt his Other was ready.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
After changing back into their school uniforms and the bus ride over to school again, Aizawa stood before his students, with the exception of Iida, who was still absent from the attack on his brother. He waited for them to all get seated and prepared, before clearing his throat.

“In light of the Festival, you have the next two days off,” He announced, as everyone kept their shook in check, not wanting to annoy the teacher, given he was still wrapped up like an Egyptian Pharaoh. “After that, scouting reports and such will be waiting for you from the pros when you get back. So look forward to that and enjoy your time off.”

After class, it did not take long for the members to find their way back home, and get ready for whatever came next. Shoto and Iida, now away from their classmates, had made their way to their family members that had influenced and pushed them to become heroes. For Shoto, it was to make peace with the pain of the past, and be able to move forward. His older sister had questioned his running off when his break had just started, but he had to do this. He left on his bike.

He stood in the doorway, as his mother looked out the window, trying to find the words to say to her after all these years, a way to crush down the walls that his father had put around them both.

Iida, meanwhile, had made his way to Hosu General Hospital, standing in the doorway for several minutes, watching the broken, shattered body of his brother, unhealthily pale, and hooked to all sorts of machines. Tenya ran to his side, heart blasting away in his chest, as panic gripped his throat.

“Tenya...little bro...I’m sorry,” Tensei struggled, his voice low and thin, struggling to get each word out. “I lost...”

Tenya felt the blood leave his face, as he stood there, unable to move or even think.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
At the Midoriya Household, the next day in the early morning. Izuku had a larger plate prepared by his own mother. Izuku dug into his meal, Venom grateful for such a meal after the last day spent fighting and battling, bacon, eggs and sausage piled high on the plate, as Symbiote was almost dancing happily within Izuku’s body. It wasn’t the chocolate or tator tots he had hoped for, but the deep fried meat was delicious to the Symbiote.

“So I feinted around seven times.” She proclaimed, as they both dug in, Izuku almost entirely absorbed in his meal. “And the last two were from dehydration!”

“You got it worse then I do I think.” Izuku stated, looking up briefly at her.

Inko chewed upon a sausage for a moment, looking up at her son. “I know you’ve had this Quirk since about Middle School, but it’s...a little distressing. I still support you, but I’m just worried is all.”

“I get it.” He said slightly, looking down at his plate nervously.

Venom’s head sprouted from a long tendril from Izuku’s shoulder, as he looked at the Symbiote in shock, Inko dropping her fork in horror at the sight of the creature now before her, looking at her with the cold white splotches for eyes, it’s long, knife-like fangs almost hidden entirely from behind his mouth.

“I know you are distressed by this, Mrs. Midoriya, but your son’s survival is my chief and only concern.” Venom hissed to her, keeping his voice under control so as not to terrify her too much. “From now, I’ll ensure he does the best he can without harming ourselves.”

She nodded slowly, still looking terrified at the alien monster that was now part of her son, as the creature slowly receded back into Izuku’s body without another word. She drew the fork back into her hand with her own Quirk, and continued on with the meal.

The two day break seemed to go by in an instant, the students soon returning to their classes. Izuku was on one of the trains on the way to UA, looking over his phone in boredom. Something had caught his eye, about a former army unit being massacred by something that resembled Jet, but he didn’t have time to read it before he was interrupted by some of the other train-goers.

“Hey, you’re that Midoriya kid from the Sports Festival right?” One of them, an older business man asked.

He shut off his phone and looked up, nodding slightly. “Huh yeah, I guess.”

“Man, that was something else that fight.” He said, as others joined in to congratulate him and give him words of encouragement. “That quirk of yours is insane, but you had the feel of a classic, good ole days hero, man.”

He was taken a back by how many were eager to let him know how cool and amazing he had been throughout the fights. He had thought a ‘Quirk’ like Venom’s would be too terrifying for others to look at or watch, but these people seemed to have taken a shine to their abilities and powers when they combined them together.

As he got off the train, to get to his classes, he did not notice, the strange man getting off right after him, hanging back slightly to watch him leave. He had slicked back blonde hair, and a gaunt, expressionless face, shades over his eyes, and a dull blue suit over his thin frame. The man stood for a long time, before following behind in Izuku’s wake, careful not to make any sudden moves or stand out too much. He pulled out a phone, and hit the speed-dial, before waiting. After a moment, he was answered, and he cleared his throat.

“I have sight of the target,” He reported, his voice cold and unfeeling, as he waited for the answer from his superiors. “Yes, I will keep watching. I am 99% sure he’s got a Bug himself, and I will find this out.”

He remained hidden, as Izuku continued down the streets, though stopped and looked back towards the man, only for him to seemingly vanish from sight. Izuku blinked in confusion several times, before he spoke to his Symbiote.

“What is it Venom?” He asked quietly in confusion.

“I sensed something.” Venom replied, scanning through the area, trying to detect anyone nearby for any sign of attack or spies, but found nothing. He silently shook it off, as Izuku continued on towards the school.

The bright sunny day gave way to rain clouds, as Venom formed an umbrella with some of his tendrils, spreading them out over Izuku’s head to keep the rain off him. Venom still couldn’t shake the feeling he was being followed, and, come to think of it, neither could Izuku. He definitely felt like there had been a blond guy or something that got out of the train after them, and had given him the creeps, but now, there was no one in sight.

Izuku ignored the feeling, figuring he was just getting jumpy, and that Venom was being thrown off by all the people around them. The trek continued on, as they reached the UA grounds, where the gates were opened for them. Izuku sighed, leisurely making his way through.

“It’s only the morning and I already feel wiped out.” He muttered.

“There is no time for strolling through!” A familiar voice shouted behind him, as Tenya ran past in a sprint. “We’ll be late for class!”

“But we still have five minutes!” Izuku shouted, running after him.

“Students at UA make it a point to be 10 minutes early!” Tenya remarked, before looking at him over the shoulder. “I hope you know that’s unlicensed Quirk use.”

“Jeez, I haven’t seen someone with a stick up their ass like this since my time with those Guardians of...” Venom remarked, before Izuku interrupted him, clearing his throat and nervously changing the subject. It was something he wasn’t sure how to brooch. “So, Um...”

They made it inside, and made their way to the locker rooms, as Tenya removed his poncho and rainbows, the two setting their things in order for class, as Tenya gave him a smile, appearing reassuring, but something on his face and in his eyes told Izuku there was something more behind it.

“I know you’re probably worried about my brother, but everything is fine.” Tenya stated confidently. “I apologize if my brother or I caused you any worry. Everything is fine.”

Izuku wasn’t so sure about that, and Venom mirrored his thoughts. “He’s lying. Who wouldn’t be upset about their kin getting hurt, but why is he lying?”

“Leave it.” Izuku muttered as Tenya left, his eyes immediately changing into an expression of cold, unfeeling determination, not seemingly hearing Izuku.

As the two entered class, the room was a buzz with discussions of situations similar to Izuku’s own, exchange all the different stories about all the people that had stopped to talk to them about their showings at the Sports festival, such as Tooru and Mina’s own developing fanbase, all the guys at the gym that had crowded around to tell him awesome and baddass he was, and Sero had the pleasure of grade schoolers telling him he put in a good effort.

Everyone was talking and trading stories amongst themselves for a few minutes, before the bell rang, signaling the beginning of class. Venom hissed within Izuku’s body, vibrating out at the noise, before it died down and returned to normal. Within seconds, the entire class had become deathly silent and sat down, right as Aizawa walked in. He was utterly silent, and had his usual stoic expression, but was never the less pleased they were finally getting with the program.

“Good morning.” He muttered.

“Good Morning.” Everyone replied back respectfully, as everyone looked in surprise to see his bandages off, and him back in his black track suit and long scarf.

“It’s good to see your bandages off so early, Mister Aizawa.” Tsuyu remarked pleasantly.

Aizawa stood at the front of the class, nodding as he rubbed the sleep form his eyes. “Yeah, the Old Woman went a little far with it, but I’m glad to be out of that crap.”

He took a deep breath, scratching near one of the scars under his eyes for a moment. “But never mind that, today we have Hero Informatics, special ones at that.”

Many in the classroom’s spirits sank, Kirishima and Denki looking on in abject horror at the mere idea of it. Did the special part mean a pop quiz on Hero Laws and ordinances? Would Aizawa really do that? He seemed to hang for a moment, letting the suspense build in his students, before speaking again.

“You’ll be picking your own hero names.” He said finally, as he hide a small smile on his face. He would’ve lied, but personally, he enjoyed toying with the students a bit like that from time to time. ‘A pop quiz on hero law would do them some good.’

The entire class exploded into excitement, cheering and yelling as the energy built in them, Tenya trying his best to assert control over his overly rambunctious peers, before everything fell silent with a darkened death glare from Aizawa.

“Now, about the draft picks. It is all about who the heroes think will be ready to join the hero workforce in two or three years time, so it’s focused on your potential future,” He explained calmly. “But there’s ample time for their interests to wane, and any applications can be arbitrarily withdrawn at any time.”

“Stupid adults and their whims.” Mineta muttered, giving a desk a soft hit with his fist. Venom would’ve rolled his eyes had been capable. The only reason he’d lose any support was for sexual assault allegations.

“So a pick now just means more hurdles to come?” Toru asked.

“Exactly.” Aizawa stated, before raising a remote control to the black board. “Now for the numbers.”

He clicked the numbers on, the screen on the blackboard flashing for a moment, before a number of names showed up, followed by bar graphs and the exact numbers. 4,123 for Todoroki, 3,456, and then drastically lower numbers for everyone else. Only Tokoyami came close to them, with a measly 360. But what caught everyone’s eyes, was, next to Izuku Midoriya’s name, was only one. A strangely low number, given how close he had come to winning, and just how strong his Quirk is.

“Excellent work as always, Todoroki.” Momo said nervously, as he merely shook his head and rolled his eyes.

“It’s all just my father’s influence.” He muttered in disdain.

Uraraka shook Tenya in surprise, absolutly excited and shocked. Even with just 20, 

“See, you must’ve scared everyone off.” Mineta said, nudging his shoulder.

Venom manifested from his back, getting within inches of Mineta’s face, growling like an enraged animal. “Tough us again, and you’ll lose both hands.”

Mineta backed away in shock, shaking slightly in terror. Izuku wanted to lecture Venom on snapping at his classmates, but didn’t have time, as the Symbiote retreated into his frame, and Aizawa continued on with his lecture, apparently not seeing, or maybe not caring, about Venom’s threat.

“With all that said, whether or not you were picked, you’ll all have a chance to work alongside the pros.” Aizawa explained, as Izuku, scratched his chin slightly, deep in thought. Who was the one hero who picked him out. “You already have more experience with villains then other classes, but this is still important, and you will learn far more working alongside the pros.”

“Oh, so that’s were the hero names come in!” Seto stated with a grin, as a few others began to chatter amongst themselves.

“They’re only tentative, but try to pick something fitting, ok?” Aizawa said, trying to keep his class’s excitement and energy at a reasonable level.

“Or else you’ll be in for a world of hell if you pick the wrong one.” A familiar voice stated, as Midnight entered the room, everyone looking up in surprise at her appearance. “The name you pick may end up being what the world calls you. It’s happened to most of the Pros.”

“Yes, true enough. It will be Midnight who judges the sensibility and rationality in your names,” He stated, reaching for his sleeping bag, as he muttered to himself. “I’m not at all good at that.”

The class looked as he unrolled and carefully prepared his sleeping bag, as Midnight stepped up to the front of the class. “Where do you see yourself? What kind of image do you want to project? A name can say everything about a hero, like with All Might.”

With that, Aizawa retreated into his sleeping, sucking up a juice box, and crawling into a corner like a caterpillar to nap like a tired old cat, as Midnight took charge of the class, passing out whiteboards and markers, as Izuku thought over his own name. As a kid he had thought of all kinds of names like All Might’s own, but things had changed rapidly since that day of playing with his mom and dreaming of the future. With Venom, things were so different, and what he could do as a hero was drastically different from his idol.

‘Should we go with your name?’ Izuku mentally asked his Symbiote, as he thought over names. ‘You are doing most of the work.’

“I’m just a Symbiote, you give me purpose and direction.” Venom replied, squirming through his chest and shoulders. “You’re the hero, you choose the name. I’m but your tool.”

Izuku didn’t exactly think of it like that. Venom was his Other, but if he was leaving the name up to Izuku, then that was enough to signal some trust at least. ‘Do you think we should stick with our nickname. It was used to mock us?’

Venom thought for a moment, rumbling a bit within his ears. “Do as you want.”

Izuku waited, as the others came up. The others came up, Aoyama coming up with a large, whole sentence of a name “I cannot stop Twinkling”, which everyone agreed was too clunky and long for it work, forcing him to shorten it to “Can’t Stop Twinkling”. Next was Mina, who was so excited she could, as usual, barely contain her enthusiasm. She smacked her sign on the podium, grinning widely.

“Alien Queen.” She said, grinning from ear to ear.

“That thing with the acid blood, in the movie?” Midnight remarked in shock, shaking her head slightly. “You’ll never get by copyright with that one!”

“I thought it was good.” Venom remarked, slightly glum at the rejection of the name, as Izuku thought over their own name.

“I’ll go next,” Tsu volunteered, Midnight gestured towards the front for her. Tsu stepped up, putting her own board on the podium for all to see, as she gave a proud smile. “I had this thought of since elementary school. Call me Froppy.”

“Lovely! It makes you so approachable!” Midnight gushed, partially relieved to finally have a student giving a normal name, and partially just because she found it so delightful. 

The rest of the class cheered for her name, chants of “Froppy, Froppy!” echoing across the class as everyone gave her thumbs up and signs of approval. The other students originally nervous and uncertain after the first two, were absolutely alive and excited once more. Following, were the other students, each with names of their own. Kirishima proudly marched up to the front, slamming his sign down broadly. 

“Call me Red Riot!” He declared.

Venom twisted up and stiffened at the name slightly, as Izuku felt his fingers twitching slightly, looking down in confusion, before whispering to himself. “Are you ok Venom?”

“Sorry, I just.. the name.,,” Venom hissed nervously. Izuku looked out the window, hiding his worried expression slightly.

‘Riot was your team leader right?’ Izuku asked. ‘Just how scary was he?’

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Venom barked in his mind, sounding louder then usual. Izuku backed away from the subject, as Midnight looked at Kirishima’s name thoughtfully.

“Would that be a reference to Chivalrous Hero, Crimson Riot?” She asked thoughtfully. 

“He is an idol of mine.” Kirishima admitted.

“As long as you’re aware of the pressures that come with having to live up to such a hero.” She said with a small smile. “If you can do that though, I’m sure Crimson will be proud.”

Countless others followed, as Izuku thought over his own Hero name. The opportunity to use Venom’s own name as theirs was tempting, but Venom seemed to want him to lead his own way, and make the hero name his own. He was not even close to All Might in terms of power and ability, and even invoking him seemed like a joke. No, he would have to come up with something all his own.

As he chewed over name ideas, others brought their names up, one after the other, each as creative and inventive as the last, except Todoroki, who seemed keen just to use his first name, before Bakugou stood up with his, slamming his board down on the podium with a growl. 

“King Explosion Murder.” He declared simply.

“God no! That’s not even appropriate!” Midnight stated.

“Why not?!” Bakugou shouted back, dumbfounded.

“Bakugou, no.” Aizawa mumbled, shaking his head, as he cracked an eye open to give his student a weary glare.

“Why not Splodey Boy?” Sero suggested, as he and Kirishima laughed to each other, Bakugou devolving into unintelligible yelling and cursing.

“How about Killer Queen?” Venom suggested as he appeared out of Izuku’s shoulder. “Y’know, Dynamite with a laser beam, guaranteed to blow your mind?”

“You shuddup too!” Bakugou barked, as he marched back to his desk, cursing to himself.

Midnight sighed, shaking her head. She wasn’t sure how Aizawa dealt with such a crazy class for most of the day, especially with his infamous...disposition. “Well, this was smoother then I thought. We have Bakugou’s revision, Iida’s name, and then Midoriya.”

Tenya was lost in thought, his mind drifting back to the day before break. The day his brother broke the news, that he had lost feeling in his legs, and his days of heroics were well and truly over. Tensei had wanted him to take on the mantle of Igenium, but Tenya had refused to. Even now, it was pure denial. It was a simple mistake by the doctors.

‘His legs will return any day now. With enough physical therapy and re-training, he’ll return to active duty.’ He thought to himself, hand shaking as he held the marker. ‘I needn’t worry about taking his moniker. He’ll be fine, absolutely.’

With a final prompting from Midnight shaking him out of his thoughts, Tenya scribbled his own name on. Izuku, Uraraka and Tokoyami gave him strangle looks as he stood there with only his name to show, but none of them said anything. Something seemed off, but before anyone could say anything, he merely made his way back to his seat. Midnight gave him a slightly surprised and worried look, wanting to say something to him, but decided to wait til after class, before turning to Midoriya.

“Izuku, you’re up.” She managed.

He came to the front, Venom’s miniature head sprouting from his back, his fangs clicking slightly together in a smile, manifesting as though to show his support and favor for Izuku’s Hero Name. Midnight eyed it with some apprehension, tapping her chin.

“Are you sure about this Midoriya?” She asked.

“Yes, I am.” He said assuredly with a smile. “I originally didn’t like it, but two people important in my life showed me it could be awesome.”

He stood proudly, with a warm smile, as Venom bobbed slightly, as though nodding in agreement with him. “I’m no longer the useless Deku who can’t do anything. I’m the Lethal Protector Hero Deku, the one who always gives it his all.”

Uraraka smiled warmly, proudly at his achievement, as Izuku nodded to her. Venom almost wanted to celebrate, but kept his emotions under control. Soon, he would bring these two together, but he would have to wait. Bakugou meanwhile, glared up at him, half enraged, as usual, half quite unable to believe what he was seeing, if his eyes were playing tricks on him. Was stupid, useless Deku, the pebble in his path, really taking pride in this nickname he had come up for him. He wanted to smack him, like how Bakugou’s mother did when he stepped out of line, but decided against it. Aizawa may have been napping, but he had a feeling he would react immediately and stop him, so the Explosion user held back most of his rage to boil below the surface again.

As Izuku went back to his seat, standing tall and proud, grinning triumphantly, everyone could see just how much this name meant to him. Kirishima, Uraraka, Tokoyami and others made gestures of support and pride to him, not speaking, or saying anything a loud of course, bu their expressions and body language said enough for him to understand. His classmates were behind him, no matter what he did.

Bakugou walked once more, without a word from Midnight, and slammed his board down once more upon the podium, before yelling his name again, as though expecting this one to pass. “Lord Explosion Murder!”

“That’s basically the same thing.” Midnight muttered, shaking her head. She squeezed the bridge of her nose with two fingers, sighing to herself. “You know what, just put a pin in the whole name thing, and come up with one later, ok?”

Bakugou wanted to protest the strangely dismissive attitude towards his name, but was silence by a rueful glare from Aizawa, merely grunting, and, with a shrug, lumbering back to his seat, steam rising from his body. He couldn’t wrap his mind around it. Why were people so against the names he had chosen for himself? They were just scared of his awesome names, that had to be it. He’d just have to think up a name the cowards wouldn’t be afraid of.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
After the naming session and all, Aizawa finished up the class and dismissed them for home. He was busy grading and finishing up any paper he had left for his students and the administration at his desk, bent over a computer, with his back to the door. He typed away at his computer, before hearing something scruff against the tiled floor. He snapped up, looking around for a moment, certain he had heard something or someone moving or walking around in the room, but no one was visible. Even without the attack by the League of Villains, he would’ve been on high alert, even in UA with all it’s protections. If he relied solely on UA, or anything really, he would’ve ended up in a gutter.

He looked around for a few more moments, eyes narrowed, every sense alert for any movement or attack, before deciding to go back to his work. His ears must’ve been playing tricks on him, as he returned to typing. He was 3 minutes into his work again, when he heard a chair screech and slide against the floor, as he looked up in shock. The chair that Bakugou normally occupied had moved itself, as he stood up, scarf and ever muscle in his body ready to snap and move in an instant.

Before his eyes, a figure appeared, flashing into existence out of nowhere, blond, dressed in a blue suit, with shades over his eyes, one leg folded over his knee, as he twirled a lock of hair, simply gazing at Aizawa without even reacting.

“You needn’t get violent, Mister Shouta Aizawa, I am not a villain.” The figure remarked calmly, not reacting in the slightest. “I’m merely here to talk.”

“And yet you’ve snuck through UA’s defenses and shown right up in a class that was just attacked a few weeks back.” Aizawa remarked, sternly, hair rising as his eyes burned red. “You’d have better had a good reason for this.”

“You know the High Hero Commission? I am work for a branch of theirs.” He explained coldly, not moving a muscle, as Aizawa backed off. The HHC was one of many branches of the Hero Public Safety Commission, and was charged with bringing in and investigating rogue heroes. Whatever he was doing here, had to be serious.

He waited a moment, looking at Aizawa through his shades, before nodding. “I see you are quite shocked, as is to be expected. I will continue to the point. I believe your student, Izuku Midoirya, is connected to the Vigilante Jet. I would like to bring him in for dissection.”

“Dissection?!” Aizawa demanded, immediately growing enraged again, stepping towards the man as his scarf sprang up like a coiled serpent.

“An unfortunate side-effect. What we do with abilities like his, are highly classified.” The Man replied without even flinching. “Whatever else you want to asked about this, is classified.”

“I don’t care how classified or what red tape is around it,” Aizawa stated, glaring at the man with an intensity to burn through steel and mountains. “You. Will. NOT. TOUCH. my. Students! Any of them!”

Despite the quiet fury and fire boiling in his voice, beneath Aizawa’s cool veneer, the Suit remained impassive, merely studying him for a moment. Aizawa briefly felt himself hesitate, fearful for a moment. What sort of figure, what sort of agent, wouldn’t even react with a pro ready to lash out and get angry right now?

“I see you’re upset. I’ll take my leave.” He stated, standing from his chair, his gaze never leaving Aizawa, as the two glared each other down. “Don’t try and find me. I am not someone you can find twice.”

The figure faded form sight in an instant, as Aizawa immediately activated his Quirk, his eyes turning red as he tried to cancel the man’s abilities. He had moved quick however, disappearing without a trace. Aizawa ran to the door, hoping to stop him from leaving, standing there with his arms and legs spread eagle, but nothing happening. He looked around the room in confusion for a moment, hoping his gaze would reveal wherever the man was hiding, before shutting it off in frustration.

Without a moment to waste, he turned and bolted down the hallway for Nezu’s office. As his back turned away from the classroom, the man, from the torso up, appeared from the ceiling, the rest of his body taking the form of small, metallic insects, silver-black and near-featureless, as he watched him leaving, carefully balancing his head on one hand, as he studied Aizawa leave.

“I will not stop my mission. Thank you for letting me know my foes, Symbiote or not.” The Man said simply, before his form broke apart into a number of insects and they vanished from sight.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
By time Aizawa had gotten to Nezu’s office, bushing his way past security and Nezu’s secretary, and demanding he look over the surveillance footage, there was no sign of the individual. Indeed, looking over everything, but all that appeared on the cameras was the mysterious man’s appearance in the classroom, and later in the hallwall, before completely disappearing from any visual or audio scans. Even scans meant to pick up life signs were showing very little out of the ordinary.

Nezu shifted his weight slightly within chair, obviously nervous, before speaking. “I’m afraid, that, if this man is part of the HHC, like you claim, we can do very little.”

“He threatened my student.” Aizawa said icily. “He came into our school, without setting off one alarm!”

“Understandable, but he’s on a level we can’t even begin to approach.” Nezu explained, disturbed himself. This man had acted, in nearly every way a villain, but Nezu couldn’t do much to pursue him. Yet. “The Hero Public Safety Commission along would have this entire school sacked if we looked at the HHC branch wrong.”

Aizawa nodded, taking a deep breath through his teeth. “Then I’ll just ignore this, and not pursue this on my own, and not draw the school into it.”

Nezu looked at him with an annoyed, sideways glance. “Mister Aizawa...”

“Like I said, I won’t involve the school or investigate it.” Aizawar replied, his eyes locked on Nezu’s own in smoldering anger. “I won’t lift a finger.”

Nezu slowly nodded, realizing he couldn’t reel in his fellow hero and the teacher. “Do what you think is best then, if you won’t involve the school and all.”

Aizawa nodded, turning and leaving, hands in his pocket, as he buried his face halfway into his scarf, glaring out ahead as he made his way through the mostly empty halls now.

‘I can’t find you twice, you claim, but the problem is, I never found you to being with, you came to me,’ He thought, as a smile came to his scruffy, beat up face. ‘So I’ll really go and find you now, no matter what government branch you work for. I won’t need two chances to find you, and teach what happens when you threaten my students.’

Aizawa continued down the halls, already beginning to plan out his next course of action against the strange Suit that come crawling into his class. If he took the form of a bug, Aizawa promised himself, he’d crush him like one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm surprised at how quick I finished this one. I had to rush some elements, but I think I covered most of the topics well. My sticking with Deku as his hero name came from how a lot of other Venom/MHA fics abandoned it for something else, which always bothered me a bit, so I had them both decide to keep it. Likewise, the Man in the Suit is a figure based slightly off the Suit from the Comics (https://marvel.fandom.com/wiki/Suit_(Earth-616)), and Risotto Nero from Jojo. I originally intended for him to appear in the early parts of the Sports Festival, talking with, and butting heads with Godzillo, but thought that made the parts too top heavy and didn't mesh well, so I moved him to here.


	17. Intern with a Monster

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku and Venom find themselves training and learning from one of the Hero World's biggest titans.

The end of the week had come, and the class spent the time picking out their internships, the draftees left with their lists of Hero Agencies, while everyone else was given resources for finding hero agencies that were open and interested in taking in recruits and interns from UA School, and it’s corp of student. Izuku was left confused over the fact he had only had one agency that had drafted him. According to Aizawa they had two days to pick their agency of choice. It would Aizawa the time to send out the paper work and get things ready. Izuku carefully handled the folder piece of paper he was handed, and unfolded it slowly, looking at the one name before him.

Toho Combat and Theatrics Agency. He had been drafted by a Hero Agency that doubled as a filming crew. Once he got home and had done the research into it, he found the Agency was that of the famous Godzillo. Of all the Heroes, he wasn’t sure why such a massive star, in more ways then one, had his eye on him, but he recalled from the Sports Festival how he had said he had his eye on Izuku thoughout. Perhaps something about Venom reminded Godzillo of his own Quirk?

By time they got back with everything ready, everyone was exchanging their picks for the draft. Mineta was the first to speak up.

“I’m going with Mountain Lady!” He declared with a grin.

Tsuyu walked past him, not even batting an eye before replying. “Mineta, you’re thinking lewd thoughts.”

“I am not!” He protested,

“So, huh, Deku, you got an agency planned out?” Ochako asked, as Izuku was still looking over the papers for Godzillo’s agencies, deep in thought for a moment, before she spoke again, a little louder. “Uh, Deku?”

“Oh! Sorry! What?” He said, looking up in confusion.

“What agency are you going with?” Uraraka asked innocently.

“Oh, Godzillo’s. He’s been interested in me since the Sports Festival, and he was the only one to pick me, so it felt right.” He said with a shrug, before smiling up at Uraraka. “Which one are you going with?”

“I decided on Gunhead Agency.” She said, arms folded behind her back.

“Isn’t he sort of a rough house scrapper type?” Izuku asked, surprised at her choice. It didn’t seem like the Uraraka he had first meet.

“I know, but after the fight with Bakugou, I want to change my direction and how I do things.” She explained, taking a combat stance and doing some air punches. “Taking the old way of doing things is just gonna limit my choices and attitude.”

She nodded to him, as Izuku grinned in return. She turned to Tokoyami, who was coolly leaning back in his seat, arms crossed in front of him, seemingly unaware or aloof and detached from the entire conversation around him.

“So Tokoyami, what agency are you signed up with?” Uraraka asked, both of them leaning in to listen to him.

He opened one eye, looking at them sideways, and, without even moving, answered. “Hawks, in Kyushu. I need to learn speed and combat from him.”

“Wow, the number 3 took an interest in you,” Izuku remarked brightly, smiling excitedly. “You must feel honored to work under him.”

“More nervous actually.” Tokoyami answered, sitting straight in his chair. “I’m wondering if I’ll be able to keep up.”

Uraraka nodded slightly, crossing her arms in front of her in a relaxed manner. “I’m sure you’ll do great, you’re one of the best in the class.”

Tokoyami nodded silently, as Iida quietly brooded over the paperwork he had signed. He was on his way to Hosu. The time studying his hero options had given him time to pick the way closest to the Hero Killer’s current haunting grounds. He would do what the police and pros could not. He would finish what his brother’s attacker once and for all.

By time the next week came around, everything had been prepared by Aizawa, who seemed more on edge recently then before, as though something was bothering him. Izuku and Venom had the ever sneaking suspicion it had something to do with them, but neither said anything, keeping to themselves to avoid his attention. Why he was so focused, neither human nor Symbiote could figure out, and Venom hoped it wasn’t over anything Jet Black had done.

“Do you think he’s onto us?” Venom asked his host on the train station that would take them all across Japan.

‘No, it can’t be.’ Izuku said stiffly, still not sure himself at this point.

Aizawa stood, looking over his students like an overprotective parent, despite his bored expression, nodding slightly before speaking. “Alright, everything is ready correct, you all have your costumes right? You don’t wear them without permission, and be on your aboslute best behavior, understand?”

“Ye~~aah!” Ashido replied in excitement before the others.

“Don’t slur your yeah, Ashido.” He muttered, before looking over the rest of them. “You’ll all do great. Just don’t do anything to embarrass the school.”

The students began to pack away and head towards different trains to race off into the far corners of Japan and get their new Internships started, Izuku and Uraraka stopping Iida before he got on the Train to Hosu City.

“Listen, we heard about what happened to your brother on the news, it’s really terrible.” Izuku said softly, looking at his larger friend in worry. “If you need to talk, if things get too much, don’t even hesitate to contact me, Uraraka or Tokoyami.”

The Raven-headed boy passed by, stopping to nod to Iida. “I’ll be busy, but I will clear away any issues to help a friend.”

“Thank you all, but that isn’t needed.” Iida said with a smile, despite the cold fury burning in his eyes. “I’m fine. You all do your best. As Class President I can’t have my comrades failing on my account!”

He turned quickly, heading for the train, as the three looked to each other in worry, before splitting off on their own. Tokoyami nudged Izuku on the shoulder as Iida disappeared into the crowded training, gesturing towards his back.

“You’ll be in Tokyo, and closest to Iida, right?”

“If anything happens, I’ll do everything I can to get to him.” He said with a nod, as the others gave hopeful smiles. Even with his speeches and all, something was obviously eating at Iida.

“Good, we can’t let him fall apart.” Tokoyami said with a nod, before leaving for his own train.

Izuku’s ride to Tokyo proper was not long, and he was soon meet with the skyline, dominated by the red and white Tokyo Tower and other famous sites. Ever since the arrival of Quirks and the mayhem that followed after, Tokyo had lost some of it’ s lusture and even status has capital, but remained one of the most beautiful sites in all Japan, even today. He stepped off the train, looking around for a moment, before he began to pull out his papers for directions to Godzillo’s agency.

His thoughts about how to get there from here were interrupted by a woman’s voice calling to him.

“Hey kid, you the ‘Midoriya’ person?” She called, as Izuku turned in surprise.

The lady was tall and slightly athletic in build, also all white, moth-like antenna sticking out of her messy hair, and strangely luminescent eyes. She was dressed in a business dress that resembled colorful butterfly wings folded over her frame. Something about the lady was oddly familiar, just how her hair looked and the way her antenna stuck out of her hair.

“Well, cat got your tongue?” She asked, giving him a bored expression, as he quickly nodded.

She gestured with her head towards the red convertible parked behind her, the engine still running, as he made his way down to her level.

“I’m Mothra, I’ll be taking you directly to the Big Guy in charge.” She stated, as she took his suitcase and tossed it in the back, and opened the front door.

Izuku quickly scrambled to the shotgun seat, as he looked at her in surprise. She started the car drove off without a moment to spare. The drive was mostly in silence, as she quickly sped through traffic, weaving to and fro, through honking and cursing, completely uneffected by everything around, as she focused ahead on the road. Izuku gripped the door handle and the compartment in utter terror. This was not how he imagined getting to the Hero Agency.

“So, you part of the UA courses?” She asked suddenly, as he almost jumped.

“Yeah, yeah.” He said with a nod, quickly and nervously, looking up at her. “Did you...catch any of the Festival?”

“Nah, I was busy on a mission. Mexico, Nazis, Aztec Vampire Gods, the whole thing.” She muttered with a shrug, as Izuku looked at her in confusion, hardly believing his ears. “My niece Mina is supposed to go there. You know her?”

“Oh definitely, she’s amazing on the move and all.” Izuku said with a nod. “I thought you looked like her.”

Mothra nodded and grinned to him. “Yep, sister got the horns, I got the antenna. She got the acid, I get the lasers and pollen.”

He thought he heard her mutter something under her breath about “And dying in all my damn movies”, but didn’t want to push the subject, so simply concentrated on the road as she drove them around. They finally after almost spinning wildly into one of the side streets, slowing and easing into the easier speed limit, making another turn, and easing into the parking lot of a large, silver building that looked like a cross between a fortress and a movie studio.

Mothra stepped out, Izuku hastily following her, and grabbing his bag, and following her to the studio, as he clicked the button to lock the doors. Izuku followed in her wake, directly behind her, not saying anything until he was sure it would work best. They approached a set of steel doors, before she clicked in a code, and the doors groaned open, steam hissing out as she lead them in.

They were standing over a balcony overlooking entire model cities, buildings as large as Izuku or even bigger, as they walked past two men sitting back and sipping tea and eating a light meal. One was a tall, wiry man, skin like hardened leather, with definite scorch marks along parts of his body, an aviator jacket, and two what looked like horns poking out of his spiked hair. The other was a large, rotund man, dressed in a tough, roughed up black jacket, long pants, and beat-up face that looked like he had survived 10 or so rounds in the ring bareknuckle boxing, and a small horn emerging from his nose. Mothra motioned for Izuku to keep following, as he glanced at the two in wonderment. They were familiar somehow to him, but without the gigantic kaiju forms, such would be difficult to figure out.

“Hey, hey, you gonna bring in the new meat and not introduce us?” The thinner man called, looking down at Izuku. “Kinda rude, Mariposa?”

“We’re meeting with Godzillo first, Rodan. We literally don’t have time for you to harass him.” Mothra grumbled, rolling her eyes.

“I just wanted to say, that I saw your style in tournament.” The larger man remarked, giving him a thumbs up. “Really awesome.”

Rodan didn’t seem satisfied, however, drawing himself up, and stepping towards the nervously shifting form of Izuku, looking down at him coldly. “Are you sure this kid should throwing down with us? Woulda preferred seeing Lil Mina again.”

“If you have a problem with my choices, Rodan, we can settle that down in the Scrapper Pits.” A voice called from below, carried strong despite the distance between them. 

Rodan narrowed his eyes, and withdrew back to the table, before Mothra pointed at him with a glare.

“You start shit with Midoriya again, and I’m putting a stinger through more then just your collar next time.” She threatened, just low enough that Izuku only barely caught the threat.

Rodan bared his teeth, but didn’t have time to retort before she was leading Izuku down below, making their way through the stairs, and made it into an office, with the door partially opened, as she gestured for Izuku to go inside. He stepped cautiously, to see the same gigantic man from the Sports Festival, working on some paper work, before glancing up at him with his usual cold expression.

“Ah, you must be Midoriya,” He remarked, folding up his glasses and setting them among various knic-knacks, including what appeared to be a number of troll dolls and toy fish. It was surprisingly childish for such a gruff hero. “Welcome to the Toho Hero and Production Agency.”

“Uh, happy to be here sir.” He said, standing stiffly at attention, not sure what to say or how to act before such a hero.

The man studied him, his expression as cold and unfeeling as ice, before he cleared his throat. “That was an interesting Quirk you had. It can come out and talk, correct?”

Venom sprouted from Izuku’s shoulder as if on cue, clicking his teeth slightly. “Indeed we can.”

Izuku was about to lecture him about the word choice, before Godzillo continued, standing up, his long coat billowing behind him. There was prominent scar across his stomach, as he stretched his arms slightly, but never took his eyes off Izuku, the younger Hero-in-training squirming slightly under his intense gaze.

“I’ll come out and say it, no dancing around the issue. I’m impressed with your power, it reminds me, somewhat, of my own.” Godzillo stated, stepping forward. “But I find your use of it, disappointing.”

“Disappointing?” Venom hissed, wanting to rant about how many years of combat he had seen, before stopping himself. Izuku’s eyes nervously flickered back to Venom, before looking back at Godzillo.

“What do you mean sir?” He asked stiffly.

Godzillo put up a hand, shaking his head slowly. “None of that sir stuff, just call me my hero name, or Nakajima. Now put on your hero costume. I have something I want to settle before this begins.”

“Costume?” Izuku asked, as he brought out his bag.

Godzillo pointed outside his office. “I’ve got changing rooms, down the hall, take a left, then a small right, and you can’t miss it. Once you’re done, meet me in the Pits. In the model city.”

Once Izuku had changed into his new and upgrade Hero costume, he made his way into the model city. Everything had been intricately build, with even small rooms and furniture inside the model buildings. He was amazed by it, as Godizllo hung up his long coat, and began to test and prepare his limbs and body, 

“Alright, activate your Quirk, we’re doing this simple and straightforward.” Godizllo commanded, as he began to transform, the keloid scar-like scales spreading throughout his body, as his height went up, tail sprouting from his back, as the spines tore through his back with an audible ripping of flesh. “You’re fighting me. I’m your opponent, understand?”

“Wh...what?” Izuku managed in shock, Godzillo now able to stand a head over All Might or Endeavor, cracking his clawed knuckles.

“I think there’s a flaw in your combat strategies.” Godzillo explained, voice deeper and more inhuman then before. “We’ll work that out, or you’ll get used up. Now, bring out Venom.”

“What do I have to figure out then?” Izuku said, as Venom took over his frame, but even Venom’s massive frame hardly compared to Godzillo’s own, as he remembered he could get much bigger. ‘He’s not even at full height.’

“What will this accomplish?” Venom demanded, narrowing his eyes in annoyance.

“Hopefully, you’ll be quick to figure it out yourself.” Godzillo remarked, cracking his knuckles. “Don’t worry, this is how my gramps trained me, him and his friend. Some old guy named Torino.”

That did not inspire confidence, but Venom and Izuku didn’t have much room to argue with him, now that he was standing over them and ready to throw down.

“Just knock me over and knock me out, no beams or such on my part, I know how your kind reacts to that.” Godzillo explained. “Let’s get started.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The office in Detective Naomasa’s were mostly emptied out now, having cleared away his schedule and his employees to meet with All Might to discuss something important, revolving around the attack on the USJ incident. Toshinori, in his thin, skeletal form, was seated across from him, hands in his lap, dressed in dress pants and shirt, as Naomasa brought out a folder.

“We looked into the figure they called Nomu among the League of Villains.” Naomasa reported. “After conducting interviews and interrogations with the thugs and scumbags they brought along for the attack, we couldn’t find where he came from.”

“He just appeared?” Toshinori asked.

“When Shigaraki and Kurogiri hired them, the Nomu was always there, in the meet-up location they used.” Naomasa explained. “We searched that area, and found it completely emptied and cleaned. Not a spot of evidence or a fingerprint.”

Naomasa continued, pulling out a picture of a dirty-blond haired, thick set man, with unusually large lips on a line-up. “We did tests, and found Nomu was just a petty thug at one point, assault, extortion, that sort of thing. But what came up was his DNA and Quirks. He’s got DNA matching four other missing persons from across Japan.”

Toshinori didn’t react, but was obviously disturbed by the news. Naomasa didn’t finish however, and had even more news.

“He’s been loaded with so many steroids, chemicals and drugs, but we found something else. A DNA solution that doesn’t match anything even human, or any known animal in the world.” Naomasa reported. “His brain activity is negligible. When we pulled him out of the water zone, he didn’t even resist. He barely even reacts to anything.”

“Is he even still human?” Toshinori asked.

“To a point, but what we’re wondering about, while we pursue the case for the Ringleader, is if someone else is behind this.” He explained, wringing his hands slightly. “Adding DNA doesn’t just give you extra Quirks. Something else had to be used to create and make Nomu the way he is. I think there might be a Quirk that allows someone to take other Quirks.”

Toshinori didn’t react. A drop of sweat dripped down his forehead, as he looked at Naomasa. The detective could tell something was bothering the veteran hero, but didn’t want to push it. He knew only that All Might had gotten into a bad scrap with a villain of incredible power. Whatever else, the Detective couldn’t find.

“Anything else?” Toshinori asked.

“No. We’re on the trail of Shigaraki, but I’ll let you know if anything else comes up.” Naomasa replied with a nod. “After the USJ incident, there haven’t been any sightings of him or Kurogiri. We have no idea, what the two are up to.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
2 Days later.  
In a darkened, abandoned bar far from the prying eyes of any heroes or law enforcement, Shigaraki was seated at a bar, while Kurogiri stood behind, obediently watching on as Stain approached, the chains and metal pieces clicking and ticking against him as he looked around, licking the corner of his lipless mouth. Kurogiri wasn’t so sure about this, but his master and himself had come to this conclusion together, to help Shigaraki push his plans forward all the better.

“I get it, you’re the guys who attacked UA, right?” Stain rasped. “You want me to join your little gang, right?”

“Yeah, exactly.” Shigaraki replied nonchalantly. 

“Fine then, I’ll think about it,” Stain muttered, before looking at Shigaraki with a narrowed glare. “but tell me, what are your ambitions, your goals?”

Shigaraki seemed confused for a moment, before merely shrugging. “I usually just destroy whatever annoys or pisses me off.”

Stain glared at him, his bloodshot eyes focused and enraged. “To think, you almost had my attention for a moment. But you’re the kind I hate the most.”

“What?” Shigaraki asked in confusion.

“Bloodlust without conviction is pointless! I would never team up with a short-tempered, petulant child like you!” Stain declared, reaching into his side sheaths and pulling out two serrated daggers from his side.

Kurogiri looked to the screen in alarm for a moment. ‘Shigaraki is all impulse and following his own bloodlust. I thought meeting Stain would cultivate something deeper in him, but this is too dangerous!’

“Master, should I step in to stop this?” Kurogiri asked, worried about where this was heading.

“No, don’t step in!” Sensei commanded. “This is the most important part. He must not simply be told. He must learn for himself what it means to develop convictions!”

Riot snarled within the lab, hissing in anger. “Is he not supposed to be my host? You promised me him. I can’t use him if he’s dead.”

All for One hit a button, temporary stopping the communications as he replied to the Symbiote. “Shigaraki will be fine. Let me handle his learning. He has to be ready for you physically and emotionally, yes?”

Riot nodded, going further into the darkness, the squirming form of another homeless vagrant, his Quirk stolen and his body unable to become a Nomu like the many, many others, trapped in his claws, about to become a meal. He would wait and see what All for One’s teaching would do for Shigaraki. Stain wasted no time at all to slice Kurogiri’s arm, and pinned Shigaraki to the floor, one blade in Shigaraki’s shoulder, the other in the floor near his neck. Shigaraki glared up at him, seemingly unaffected by the blades and the bloodshot gaze Stain was giving off.

“Kurogiri, can you see this guy out?” Shigaraki managed, despite the blade through his shoulder.

“I...can’t move...” Kurogiri managed, struggling as his bodylocked down, only his lungs and breathing kept normal. ‘It must be the Hero Killer’s Quirk.’

“Those that truly wish to accomplish their goals, the strong, need will...need conviction.” Stain ranted softly, glaring down at Shigaraki. “The weak, those lacking in these conditions will be weeded out. Hence, your death.”

Shigaraki, despite the blade embedded in his right shoulder, lifted the corresponding arm and grabbed the blade hovering over his neck, despite drops of blood now dripping from a newly formed cut on his hand.

“You sure talk a lot about convictions, and I’ll admit I got nothing as grand as that,” Shigaraki said with a grin, as the blade began to rust over and crumble apart. “But if I had to say one thing, it’s All Might, and the society that worships him. Yeah, I’d love to see it all crushed and turned to dust.”

Stain shuddered at the insane glint in his eyes, and the mad grin on his face, even with the Hand Mask covering his face. He was still right that Shigaraki was a temperamental brat, but this was the look of a complete, detached madman. He almost shuddered again, wondering what had produced such a hellion. Shigaraki tried to reach for him, but the injury in his shoulder slowed him, allowing Stain to easily jump off him and back, as Shigaraki got to his feet.

“You know, we don’t have a healing member in our party. This will take forever to fix.” Shigaraki snapped, scratching at his neck in anger. “How about taking some responsibility?”

“You first.” Stain replied simply, as Shigaraki furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

“Our goals can’t be further apart, but we have a shared goal in annihilating the status quo.” Stain continued.

“Get lost! Go home and die, or something!” Shigaraki shouted in anger. “I’m the type you hate or whatever.”

Stain sheathed his remaining dagger, shaking his head slightly, before looking over at Kurogiri, who merely was glaring him down, but had not moved from his perch. Stain wondered why someone who appeared marginally more effective and powerful as a villain was taking orders from Shigaraki, but there seemed to a third or fourth, unseen masters pulling the strings, and Stain wasn’t too concerned with whatever wannabe crime boss was using this kid as a pawn.

“I was simply testing your resolve. People show their true colors when they face death itself.” Stain explained. “You’re an odd one, but I can see the warped seed of conviction in you. It will be interesting to see how it grows.”

The two stared him down, Shigaraki’s eyes brimming with hate, while Kurogiri’s gaze remained inscrutable, unknowable. There was something unnatural about the latter, but Stain wasn’t too concerned with that.

“I will deal with you in due time, once my mission is complete.” Stain declared.

“Deal with me? Should we really let this guy in our Party?” Shigaraki grumbled, carefully rubbing his bleeding shoulder.

“Tomura Shigaraki, this one will give us strength, expertise and firepower to our efforts. Our negotiations were a success!” Kurogiri stated.

Stain ran his tongue over his jaws again, gripping the handle of his blade slightly. “I have more missions to complete. If we’re done here, I’d like to leave.”

“Of course.” Kurogiri replied, begin form into a funnel cloud-like structure.

Shigaraki merely kept glaring at the leaving form of the Hero Killer, stewing in his hatred for a moment. What was his teacher trying to show him with all of this.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Here in Tokyo, Izuku was thinking partially the same thing. Well, slightly. The Symbiote-clad Hero had been knocked on his back, and not for the first time. Venom’s eyes were unfocused, and his tongue hung lazily out of his jaws, the model buildings all around them crushed, crumbled and pulverized from their fighting. Well, mostly from Godzillo smashing and body slamming into him, whacking him across the Scrapper Pits with his tail. Godzillo stood there, dumping another water bottle into his mouth and across his muscled chest, before crushing it in his clawed hand and tossing it away.

“A’right, up again boy, we got more training to do.” Godzillo ordered, cracking his neck.

“Three times, and he still hasn’t learned anything.” Anguirus muttered, sipping on a tea cup that was probably too small for him.

“Should we give him advise?” Rodan asked, grinning slightly. “It’s getting hard to watch.”

“Just let him keep trying.” Mothra advised. “He’ll learn. Or knock himself out.”

Venom struggled to his feet, snarling and growling for a moment, as green slime dripped from his fangs and tongue. The Symbiote glared at Godzillo as his gaze focused on the Kaiju Quirk-user. The gigantic Lizard-being merely gave him a bored expression, lazily scratching the side of his lower jaw, before snapping his fanged jaws together.

“We are Venom! And we’re not done yet!” Venom roared, as Godzillo merely shrugged.

“Cool.” Godzillo replied slightly, as Venom charged at him, smashing through the floor with his clawed hands and feet, ‘Those floors aren’t easy to repair.’

Venom jumped through the air at him, claws out-stretched, before the Monster King spun on his heel and swung his tail at Venom’s chest. Instead of letting the tail smash into his body, Venom let it hit him, and within a second, wrapped his left arm over the tail, before the being raised it’s free hand, and fired a strand of biomass at Godzillo’s shoulder. Anguirus sat up a little, stroking his chin.

“I think he might get it.” He remarked with a tinge of excitement.

“Maybe.” Mothra stated, as Venom swung forward and lunged at Godzillo’s neck with his left hand, freeing the tail.

“You’re crossing your center, limiting your strength.” Godzillo remarked, as his right hand closed into a fist and snapped upwards, the back of his fist smashing into Venom’s face and sending him crashing into another building. He sighed, cracking his neck, as the building collapsed under Venom. “You still haven’t learned.”

Venom scrambled to his feet, snarling, as his face feel back, Izuku glaring up at Godizllo. “Learn what, all you’ve done is beat the crap out of me.”

“Have you even looked over the battle, after you lose each time?” Godzillo asked, as he grabbed another water bottle, tiny in his oversized claw now, and glanced at Izuku. “I’ll give you a few minutes.”

Venom slowly faded back into Izuku’s body, as he walked away, any injuries healed up from their few minutes of fighting. He walked to the edge, carefully stepping over the ruins and shattered pieces of buildings, racking his brain over what Godzillo was trying to get across to him. 

‘What are we doing wrong Venom?’ Izuku asked.

“I do not know. He’s simply too strong and powerful in a physical fight,” Venom replied bitterly. “He just overwhelms us in everything.”

Rodan sighed, standing from his chair and walking straight off the balcony, as the other continued drinking their tea and talking amongst themselves, hardly caring for what Rodan did. It wouldn’t be the first time he did something like that. Izuku looked up in shock as Rodan crashed down onto the ground, the floor groaning and cracking slightly, as he approached.  
“Are you here to call me a nerd too?” Izuku asked with a sigh, not in the mood for any of this.

“Yes, but also to give some advise.” Rodan said, drawing close, almost uncomfortably close. “Listen kid, I can tell that part of your style comes from All Might, all big strong and charge right in.”

Izuku was surprised by his words for a moment, before the Fire Demon hero continued.

“You need to think more, charge less though. Courage is good, but in every fight, they’ll be someone bigger then you, stronger then you, faster then you,” Rodan explained, pulling down his shirt to reveal his muscled chest, a stab wound above his collar bone, and several bite and claw marks across his chest. “Trust me, you don’t want to pick up bad habits like that before a real fight with a real villain.”

“So what do we do instead.” Izuku asked, eyes locked on the scars all along his chest, before Rodan pulled up his shirt and jacket. 

“I can’t answer that,” Rodan said with a shrug. “You’re the big nerd here, you should be smart enough to rub those braincells together, right?’

Wings sprouted from Rodan’s back, partially bat-like, looking like they were made of stone, flowing magma and burning fire, before he jumped and glided back to his seat, his wings folding up and disappearing into his back. His two companions shot him wry, sideways glances, as he sat down, smoothing out his beat up aviator jacket.

“You bully the kid some more?” Anguirus asked.

“Nah, just gave him some wisdom.” Rodan replied with a grin.

“Wisdom would apply you learn anything at all Rodan.” Mothra remarked, sipping her tea quietly.

“I can be fucking smart!” The Fire Demon yelled back in rage. “I’ll kick both your asses at once with my wisdom and shit.”

Both simply ignored him, as Izuku stood there thinking over everything for a moment, starting to piece together what he had meant. Charging forward and trying to out-muscle Godzillo had been a mistake. Even at a fraction of his full size and power, the Monster Hero was just too overwhelming. It reminded Izuku of his fight with the Nomu. Venom and he had only won that by surprising the strange mutant and throwing it in the deep waters. He didn’t have that option here though.

‘What do you think Venom?’ He asked finally, as his Symbiote sprouted from his shoulder. “How do we beat this?”

“I don’t know.” The Symbiote admitted quietly, looking around, before drawing in closer. “On my team, I was a grunt. Riot had the arsenal of weapons as a Team leader, Scream and Mayhem had more then me, and all of them were stronger. I just throw my muscle in at any foe that was needed.”

“That doesn’t really help.” Izuku muttered, taking a sharp breath through his teeth. “Unless they magically drop into and bound with our friends.”

Venom seemed to stiffen at that idea. “No. Not them. Especially not Riot.”

“Midoriya, you ready?” Godzillo called to him.

“In a second!” Izuku replied back, before turning to his Symbiote. “We need to change things up somehow.”

“I might have an idea. Let try something.” Venom said, shrinking back into Izuku’s body, as the Hero-In-Training turned and began walking back to Godzillo.

“You ready for another round?” Godzillo asked, cracking his neck slightly. 

Izuku’s eyes turned black, as the Symbote began to take over his body again. “Yeah, we might have a solution.”

Godzillo raised an eyebrow, as much as a reptile could anyway, before nodding slightly. The reptilian titan lumbered forward, stomping one foot down, the ground shaking from the impact, as he prepared for the attack. Izuku let Venom take over again. The two squared off for a moment, waiting the other out, circling like two wolves ready to strike. Venom and Izuku both knew Godzillo wouldn’t need to make the first move. It was just a matter of getting the perfect angle to hit from. As the two glared each other down, Venom suddenly jumped forward, and Godzillo, used to his usual tactics, swung around to bat him away with his tail, but instead, found the Symbiote jumping onto his tail, using it as a spring board, and slamming into the ruins of one of the buildings, before jumping at the Kaiju Hero.

Godzillo’s eyes widen in slight surprise, turning again as fast as he could to try and intercept the Lethal Protector before he could connect, Venom firing a strand of biomass to a building to Godzillo’s right, swing over to there, and jumping off again, and swinging a clawed hand at Godzillo’s face. The Kaiju Hero grunted, before swinging an open palm into the side of Venom’s body, under his out-stretched arms, and hitting hard to give off a resounding crack, before sending Venom flying into another building, smashing through it and several others around him.

Godzillo looked on in surprise, wiping the blood from his check with his wrist, as Venom struggled back to his feet. The Symbiote staggered for a moment, before retreating into Izuku’s body, the Teen shaking off his daze and pain. Godzillo approached carefully, as Izuku sighed in defeat.

“I thought if I tried a new attack pattern, that would work but...” He began in a defeated tone, before Godzillo raised a clawed hand.

“Hold it kid. You did better that time. You almost had me.” Godzillo explained, gesturing to his quickly healing scars across his face. “You did fantastic. A loss today in training is nothing.”

“Is that the lesson you were trying to teach, to move around?” Izuku asked.

Godzillo’s scales began to fade and disappear from his frame, as he returned to a normal, albeit very powerfully built man. “Yeah. My gramps always taught me that you can never simply tell someone. You have to use more roundabout ways to get them to reach the conclusion.”

“I’ll try to do better then I guess.” Izuku said with a shrug.

“First, we eat. I know your power burns through your a lot when you use it for an extended period of time, so does mine.” Godzillo remarked. “Let’s hit one of the big Japanese restaurants. It’s been a while since I’ve had something not slathered in grease.”

Venom’s head appeared from his shoulder, as Izuku began to follow him out. Godzillo turned to his comrades, stopping for a moment as he picked up his jacket. “You guys want to grab a bite with us?”

“Nah, you two go on ahead, we’ll stay here.” Mothra called to them.

Godzillo nodded, gesturing for Izuku to follow. Before Izuku could ask how they would get there, and if this counted as a patrol mission or not, Godzillo produced the keys from his jacket pocket, retrieved from Mothra while Izuku was changing and grinned.

“I know a great place that does drive through, we don’t even have to change.” He said, before gesturing to the car. “Along the way I can explain some hero basics and stuff to ya.”

“Shouldn’t we like, patrol or something?” Izuku asked nervously, not sure he wanted to spend his time eating, even if it would make Venom very happy.

“I don’t like taking a new guy out hunting on his first intern. Maybe on day three, but not now.” Godzillo explained, as he unlocked the doors and got, Izuku following in.

“What a strange guy.” Venom remarked inside Izuku’s head.

“So your Quirk can talk too? Is that a psychological thing, or just a mind of it’s own?” Godzillo asked, eyeing him from the side.

“I never really thought about it.” Izuku lied, shrugging slightly. “He always seemed to have a mind of his own.”

“Interesting.” Godzillo said, as a moment of silence passed and they got on the road. Izuku shifted uncomfortably. Even without looking at them, Godzillo was an intimidating guy to be around.

“Is he onto us?” Venom asked, sounding worried. “How many could know?”

‘I thought you were the one always telling me to relax.’ Izuku thought with a soft grin. Hearing his Other squirming and acting nervous around a hero normally would’ve been funny, but with everything going on, he couldn’t really laugh. The chance of getting caught was just too real.

“When the threat came from heroes who could figure it out. What if he does?” 

‘He hasn’t said anything that could show that though.’ Izuku replied in confusion. ‘Don’t let him get to you.’

“So, rather odd Quirk for your family, huh?” Godzillo remarked, his voice as hard as granite. “Aizawa gives us the medical reports and all for all students, but your father and mother’s Quirks didn’t match up for you.”

“Yeah, Venom was a surprise for everyone, to say the least.” Izuku said, not completely believing Godzillo now. It seemed reasonable, but with that stone face, neither could make heads or tails of how much he knew.

“I know the feeling. This Quirk was based from my grandfather and skipped a generation.” Godzillo explained, before chuckling slightly to himself. “Crazy thing to happen to a school teacher and a Jazz Musician.”

The drive continued on, in silence for a moment, before Godzillo began talking again. Izuku felt himself relax a bit. Godzillo must’ve thought he was just a normal Quirk user, nothing to really take notice of. At least, Izuku hoped that was what Godzillo’s thought process was with his next words.

“Anyway, what do you want to know? Financing, government’s role, what jobs you get, what do you want to know.” Godzillo stated, giving a glance for a few seconds, before looking back at the road. “Music deals even?”

“I’m not really sure where to start.” Izuku admitted, slightly taken aback by just how much material there was to cover.

Godzillo shrugged slightly. “Alright, we’ll start with how the government allocates resources and commissions. By the way, I hope you don’t mind some music.”

He continued on, as they drove to the dining place they would be driving into. Izuku would, however, have to deal with the fact that Godzillo’s test were decidedly old school, the Hero-Hopeful hardly able to believe anyone still listened to Prince’s Soft & Wet.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
As Izuku was being lectured and taught by Godzillo, his classmates, of course, where receiving their first missions and briefings from the Heroes they interred with. Kirishima, for example, was all too excited to find out that the Hero he had chosen, Fourth Kind, had also taken Tetsutestu as a student, the two of them eager to work together after their bout under such an honorable hero. Meanwhile, Uraraka was training under Gunhead, who, for now, was moving across the streets with her, explaining in his usual easy-going, simple way about how commissions and payment from the government worked.

All was not well for some of the heroes. Itsuka Kendo and Momo Yaoyuruzu were working with Uwabami, the Serpentress hero. They were stuck on what amounted to a glorified modeling gig and commercial job. Kendo wasn’t exactly enthused, while Momo was in deep seeded denial. Needless to say, neither were having much fun.

Of all the class, however, no one was regretting their choice as much as Katsuki Bakugou. He had chosen the Hero Best Jeanist because he was, in truth, the highest rated hero who had staked a claim on him. Katuski was all too eager to to put in his draft with the strongest hero he could get. If All Might didn’t take any, Endeavor was too busy cuddling his son, the half and half bastard, and Hawks ignored him, he’d go for the next best thing.

Best Jeanist, however, did not seem to think highly of him. Bakugou could tell before he even said anything, just the gaze he gave him, a disapproving, distant glare that Katsuki had seen too many times to count.

“To be honest,” Best Jeanist said after a moment of looking him over. “I’m not a fan of yours.”

Bakugou reared back in surprise, eyes shooting open further then before in shock. “Huh?!”

“I imagine the only reason you choose me was because I’m one of the top five, correct?” Best Jeanist cntinued with stopping, as though Bakugou hadn’t said anything. Personally, given how active he was there, he was surprised Godzillo, being as temperamental and easily angered as he was, hadn’t also staked a draft on Katsuki. ‘Given his desire to win and get as high as he can get, I doubt he would’ve accepted a place with a movie star, even one matching his temperament.’

Katsuki, annoyed, and growling like a wounded hound, simply muttered. “But you drafted me...”

“Yes, because the last few dratees I’ve had have been perfect little angels.” Best Jeanist replied, carefully preparing and messaging his hair into the perfect standard he wanted to set. “Nothing as ferocious and violent as you.”

Katsuki stepped forward, angered at not only the words, but the truth behind them, only for numerous vibers and strings to lash out from Jeanist’s wrist and frame, and even the other Side Kicks near him, and restrain Bakugou before he could move.

“Hey!” Bakugou shouted, struggling against the bonds he now found himself in. Jeanist kept his eyes cool and relaxed, hardly reacting even as he restrained Bakugou from moving.

“I’m merely preparing you and myself for what I have to do,” Best Jeanist explained, easily reading through Bakugou’s questions and rage-filled agitation about what was going on. “My job from the start is getting to the heart of the problem and reforming people of all stripes, even you.”

Bakugou glared at him still, even as Jeanist explained his modus operandi. “So, I have to train you on being an exemplary pro. That includes the manner of your speech, your looks, controlling your emotions, morals, and countess other things. Within a week, I’ll have to stitch these things into the fabric of your very being.”

Bakugou bowed his head, perhaps less out of humility for what Best Jeanist had to say, and more to simmer and brood over his own rage and anger at this attitude and his actions more then anything.

“Heroes and villains are two sides of the same coin, cut from the very same cloth. Anyone could see it in that glare of yours. So what is it that makes a hero? We’ll find that out, this next coming week, together, got it?”

Bakugou had nothing to say, still simmering in rage, as Best Jeanist expected from him. However, answer or no, Best Jeanist would do as he felt was needed to finish the job and get this over with. With that Best Jeanist took a deep breath, preparing himself for the craziness to come.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
“So that’s all there is to, well, just all the money and contracts and dealings we heroes get,” Godzillo remarked, as he drove up to the drive through of the research, glancing at Izuku with for a moment, before looking back at the cars ahead. “I’ll be honest, I’m not one for big words, but all of that is second to what we really do, stopping the baddies from doing what they do. These movies I do, the music I sign onto from Eminem and BOC, irrelevant to the real goal.”

He looked back at Izuku, his steely gaze causing the Hero-Hopeful to shiver for a moment, before he continued speaking. “We inspire the best in others and fight the worst. Don’t let all the money and desires distract you.”

Izuku had, of course, been struggling to keep everything the Kaiju Hero had said straight, but had no plans on letting anything distract him or deter him from his original goal. Even after getting Venom Izuku had always planned on being a Hero. Even if he needed to fine tune it and get the ideas just right, he would do it. But, as always, it was important to keep Godzillo’s ideals in mind. If not, Izuku might lose sight of things.

“You’re better then most hosts,” Venom remarked within his mind, causing him to snap back for a moment in surprise at the sound, Godzillo raising an eyebrow but saying nothing about his ward’s strange attitude. “You wouldn’t let that happen. I’m sure of it.”

“For the next week, I plan to cultivate your best traits and purge the worst,” Godzillo explained coolly, as they approached the drive through ordering speakers. “Don’t expect it to be easy, but don’t think I’ll be cruel, alright?”

In a way, he reminded Izuku of Aizawa and his attitude to teachings, if a little more frank and open, as though Godzillo couldn’t deploy the same level of “Rational Deceptions”. Still, Izuku couldn’t deny that the Kaiju Hero would probably the best choice for him, given everything he had seen and done. Perhaps even Venom could stand to learn something from the Internship, even with his age and experience in battle on his own before he had bonded to Izuku.

One thing that bothered Izuku, however, was that he couldn’t escape the feeling someone was watching him. He looked around, scanning past Godzillo, both his and Venom’s senses trying to detect anyone that could threaten them, but other then some teens gossiping and laughing among themselves, a family eating launch and talking, and a man in a blue suit reading a newspaper, Izuku saw nothing, returning to Godzillo’s conversation with an uneasy silence.

As he looked away, the man in the blue suit peaked out over the edge of his newspaper, watching them, taking note of Godzillo’s action with every step, and every breath.

‘I wonder,’ He thought, narrowing his red-within-black eyes at the sight. ‘I wonder if you think you could get out of the deal we have, Daisanryu Nakajima?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not much to say about this. Just working up to Izuku learning a little more, and fighting the hero killer. I do have to say, I had trouble with Best Jeanist, mostly because I wanted to write Jean Genie all the time instead of his hero name. I need to stay off David Bowie from now.
> 
> Other then that, stay safe everyone.


	18. Further Training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku continues his training, as Godzillo tackles other figures at work within Hero Society.

As Izuku was being whipped into shape by Godzillo, in his brusque, monstrous way, Tenya was on patrol in the city of Hosu. He had, as Aizawa and others could’ve deduced, picked this Hero Agency, lead by Manual, specifically for the closeness and proximity to Stain, the Hero Killer’s haunting grounds. Both he and Manual were in full costume, though compared to Tenya’s heavily armored look, Manual looked rather unimpressive. He was a few years Tenya’s senior, but looked so plain, that, without his costume, he would’ve been impossible to find in a crowd. 

“So, patrols are usually easy, but the whole city’s been on edge lately.” Manual explained, his tone easy-going despite the serious subject matter, and the unspoken elephant in the room.

“Due to Patrolmen downsizing?” Tenya ventured, his tone still impersonal and unfeeling.

“Yeah, that’s it.” Manual said, nodding over his shoulder, before turning back to the front. “Sure is nice to have Ingenium’s little bro with me. He’s a great man.”

Tenya nodded numbly, biting his lip, he thought slightly, but feeling blood draw from it. ‘The hero killer, a true phantom that even Law Enforcement can’t catch.’

He stopped for a moment, glaring down an alleyway, hoping to catch the light catching on Stain’s blades, or the flicker of his scarfs and bandannas. ‘I know it may be in vain, but I can’t stop my search. I have to find him. I won’t forgive him til I bring him in.’

He continued on, saying very little as the patrols went on. Whatever was left to be said, he’d save it for the hero killer when the time came.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Godzillo and Izuku sat within the car, eating their rather large melee. With how well cooked and prepared it was, and how they got, Izuku was surprised at the price and the quality. Of course, it was still out of his prize range, so he and his mom wouldn’t be heading there any time soon, but he’d have to remember the place for the next time, if they ever got the money to go here. The fact Venom liked it was a plus, but Venom liked even raw meat, so his opinion on food was rather moot. Izuku of course, kept his mind off that fact. Remembering what Venom had as the Jet Black Vigilante even now still made him slightly sick.

Keeping that out of his mind for a few moments was good, but sooner or later, he’d have to answer for Venom’s eating and killing spree. Godzillo shot him a brief look, before Izuku started eating again, brushing it off. The kid seemed distracted by something, like a deep, nagging terror or fear in the back of his mind. He wouldn’t poke at the kid, unless he started thinking and lapsing off during more important missions and fights. He was about to dig into his baked chicken, when Izuku seemed to stiffen. Nakajima, felt a tingle at the base of his spine and neck, as he looked out the window, to see a man in a blue suit and shades approach, Nakajima briefly glaring at the man, before he point on a fake smile.

“Hey hey Nakajima, it’s been a while. Crazy to think the whole movie and hero thing worked out.” The man said, before leaning in closer. “I have a team set up. Wrong move and the kid gets it, understand?”

Nakajima nodded, and simply put on a fake smile. “Man, Kinzokumure, it’s been a while. How things working out?”

“You want to step out and talk about it?” Kinzokumure offered, still smiling, despite his recent threats of violence. Godzillo knew he had no change right now, not with Kinzokumure apparently having a team ready, and not knowing his Quirk. ‘Best to go along with it.’

“Midoriya, stay here, I got some catching up to do.” Godzillo ordered, quickly stepping out, and joining the Suited man, as Izuku watched him in confusion. None of this felt right.

“We should follow, or stop this, that man doesn’t feel right!” Venom hissed, partially in anger, partially in fear of the man. Izuku was struck by how he was acting, trying to keep calm through the whole thing.

“Just let Godzillo handle this, he’s the hero and all.” Izuku said, trying to keep his Symbiote from doing something stupid that would get them both hurt. “Why you freaking out.”

“I’ve sensed this figure before. One being, but not completely one. Something is off here.” The Symbiote hissed, rumbling beneath his skin in agitation.

Godzillo stepped away from the car, the two standing in the parking lot, a few feet away from the back of Nakajima’s car, as Kinzokumure’s stance and attitude immediately changed, going from a faux-warmness and joy, to his cold, austere front that he always had. Godzillo was not one to be intimidated easily, given everything he had seen on the job, but this man was as cold and living as a corpse, and not someone who should be talking and interacting with other people.

“I could’ve sworn we had an agreement. We did in fact, Mister Nakajima.” Kinzokumure remarked, stroking his chin. “My boss is yours now, and he wants the Symbiote in the lab in Ogasawara, not sharing meals with them and treating them like you would any hero.”

“This is different from anything you’ve told me. They’re operating together, coordinating and talking.” Godzillo replied calmly. “There’s no mindless alien parasite at work here. They’re a team.”

“Don’t let the visage fool you. All the ones we studied were good at pulling such tricks,” Kinzokumure said with a dismissive shake of the head. “I expected better of you.”

“There’s something more at work here. The specimens in the Facility aren’t the same.” Godzillo remarked, shaking his head. “If the Old Man will give me time, I want to see more of this kid at work.”

“We’ve seen it in action already. Even if it was going after just criminals, it’s still an alien feasting on humans.” Kinzokumure sighed, eyebrow twitching in annoyance. “And if it reproduces, even you won’t be able to stop the outbreak.”

Godzillo narrowed his eyes at the idea he could’ve handle the Symbiotes, but ignored him, shaking his head. “Listen, Kinzokumure, I want to see what this kid does. I want to know if those two can do good, alright?”

The Suited-Man narrowed his eyes behind his shades, before nodding slowly, his mood changing. “hmm. That might just work actually. I’ll contact my superior. Keeping an eye on him and his actions will help us understand this all the more.”

“No you trust me on this?” Nakajima replied, raising an eyebrow.

“No, the kid is a risk to everything, but seeing how he’s managed to stay hidden and controlled for so long will help us understand the rest in the future.” Kinzokumure replied, pulling out a cell phone. “Do your Hero thing, And don’t say a word. We have no issue getting rid of your agency. In total.”

Godzillo understood the threat all too well. The Hero High Commission was a powerful agency. Even a high-profile hero could be removed without issue if they so desired it. He merely nodded stiffly, as the man turned on his heel and left to make his call, Godzillo forced to go back to his car and pretend everything was fine. It felt wrong, to say the least, that this powerful man, no, just a man, this powerful global organization was after Izuku and his Symbiote.

‘I know he has to be important, somehow.’ He thought sternly, heading back to his car. ‘Him and Venom, together. The Key to Coexsistance, in a way.’

Godzillo and his team were bodyguards to the Research Compound on Ogasawara. From the start, he had known more about Izuku’s “Quirk” then even his teachers. Of what he knew, it’s best left unsaid, for both the future of the story, and for what would come next. How they had gotten their samples, their test subjects and everything else, Godzillo did not want to know.

‘Whatever they did, I have to keep this boy safe, and anyone else around him.’ The Kaiju Hero decided firmly.

As he made his way back to the car, he was unaware of a second hero watching from afar, pictures being snapped every few seconds since he started his little talk, recording everything he could without getting too close.

Shota Aizawa may have had more work to do as the Class-1A teacher then any other, except perhaps Vlad King, but he would let that stop his investigation. As much as he didn’t completely buy Izuku’s tale of a late blooming Quirk and all, he still would not let the Blue-Suited man, Kinzokumure, threaten any of his students. They had enough already to deal, without some cover-up spook trying to weasel his way in.

“So, he knows this man?” Aizawa muttered to himself, rubbing his fingers along his few mustache hairs. “I wonder how deep this goes.”

He stood, nestled in the tree branches, just behind the parking lot of the place, no one noticing his stake-out. Eve in broad daylight, Aizawa was not a man who could be found and kept track of easily. The few that did catch sight of him most likely chalked it up to a hero on patrol in his own strange way, and ignored it. Godzillo would never notice him, only getting his usual sixth sense warning, but it was more a vague sense of incoming harm and danger then a pinpoint detection system, so he merely brushed it off as continued nerves from Kinzokumure, and not another hero spying on them.

Aizawa remained still, however, carefully watching Kinxokumure, and not even daring to breath. Large, beetle-like drones were crawling and flying out from around the parking lot, and merging and combining with his frame, crawling under his pants and sleeves, and disappearing into him. Aizawa fought back a shudder of disgust watching. Was he even human?

“Hello, Boss, I’ve contacted Godzillo about his little student he’s taken in.” Kinzokumure spoke into the phone once he was sure his boss was on the other end.

“And? Has he agreed to bring the kid in, and let us dissect the beast within?” An ancient, commanding voice replied, muffled and distorted by advanced machinery.

“He’s offered to monitor the behavior of this one. After all, these two have been bounded far longer then the beasts we’ve studied.” Kinzokumure replied with a malicious grin and confident tone. “I figured such knowledge would benefit us.”

“Be careful Kinzokumure. We both know Nakajima will find a way to squirm out of this problem. He’s not a keen supporter of us.” The Voice replied, much more cautious then before. “He might be looking for a way out.”

“He knows the risks. I’ll have my agents everywhere.” Kinzokumure replied coldly, his confidence now more subdued. “If he moves against us, if SYM-B-01 will be ours.”

“Make sure you do not overestimate yourself, Agent.” The Voice replied, before shifting to another topic. “What of Shota Aizawa. Has he tried to follow you? He is infamously protective of his students.”

“Please, I have been sending my Drones out of my body at all hours,” Kinzokumure remarked with a chuckle. “If he was near by, I would know it.”

“Watch him. I did not think someone who was pursuing the Jet Black Vigilante would be so resistant to our overtures.” The Old Man replied cautiously.

“I will be ready for anything the Commission needs of me.” The Suit remarked confidently. 

“Be sure of it.” The Old Voice replied stoically. “This is the Head Boss, out.”

The Suit hung up, nodding to himself. Though he was absolutely certain of his risks and rewards that would come, and that he would come out on top all things considered, he could still feel the nagging doubt bubbling in his heart just slightly from everything before him. He swallowed it done and kept himself focused. Aizawa was an independent hero without an Agency, and Godzillo and his gangly freak show were movie stars and actors, not real heroes. He and his fellow agents would deal with them all, if need be.

Back in the car, Nakajima got in, still bothered by what he had to deal with, but his expression barely changing. It was good and well he had a natural poker face. He didn’t want to bother Izuku, especially with the knowledge that he had a target on his back now. Or had ever since he made his debut at the Sports’ Festival.

“Who was that, Nakajima-Sensai?” Izuku asked, looking up from his iced tea.

“Kinzokumure, an old college friend.” Godzillo replied coldly. “We had some business to sort out.”

Izuku wanted to comment that it sounded like he hadn’t seen Godzillo in years, but refrained form saying anything. Something just seemed off about Kinzokumure and their interactions, and Izuku didn’t want to get into it. Godizllo had connections with a lot of scientific groups like Monarch, Science Patrol and others. Getting into all of that and the politics around it was not something Izuku wanted to bring up. Godzillo seemed to appreciate that, as he quickly moved on.

“So, we’ll have a few more sparing matches, and then once the night hits, kick back and relax.” Godzillo remarked, sounding as though he was all too eager to change the subject.

“Sounds great, I really want to get this new movement and attack pattern down.” Izuku said, half excited at the prospect of improving his abilities with Venom, half thankful to get back to something far more comfortable for him and not the strange Kinzokumure fellow.

“Good. Finish up then. We’ll head back right after.” Godzillo said with a small smile, before turning slightly to look out the window. ‘And then I’ll need to find a way to get you out of Kinzokumure’s sights.’  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
After driving home, and taking a little time to let things digest and settle in, Godzillo and Izuku/Venom got right back into fighting again, Izuku, despite the increased resistance, able to put up a good fight and land several blows on the Monster King, before finally, in their last bout for the night, knocking him into the few remaining model buildings around them. Izuku was almost shocked by how he had been able to take advantage of Godzillo’s heavy-footed nature, but was quick to move to his teacher in case of any injury.

Instead, the Monster Hero slowly rose from the crushed and ruined models, a few splinters in his thick, scaled hide, or rather, wooden spikes by any other standard, and some scraps and bruises from their fight. Rather then being upset, he bore a rare grin, giving Izuku the thumbs up, as he got to his feet.

“Good work. You took advantage of my weakness, and managed to tip me over.” Godzillo said with a nod to him. “I’m very impressed. You’ve picked up quick.”

“You aren’t injured are you?” Izuku asked, as Venom retreated into his body, looking terrified for a moment.

Godzillo chuckled, shaking his head. “Nah, I can heal from worse then a few wooden pieces. Let’s focus on you.”

“If you’re sure.” Izuku said, rubbing his palms nervously.

“I’m fine. Absolutely.” Godzillo replied, as he began to yank some of the pieces out, his wounds healing instantly as he did. “You did well. Get a shower, and get ready to rest up. I’ve got beads up above.”

Izuku nodded, as he waited for anything else form Godzillo. The Reptilian Hero merely gestured for him to leave, as Izuku ran off to get ready. Mothra came down from the floor above, rainbow wings extended as she glided downwards, before they folded up in her dress again, as she walked towards the busted up Kaiju Hero.

“I have to say, I’m impressed you managed to get him without the High Commission noticing.” She remarked.

“Nah, they know. Had Knzokumure on me today.” Godzilloa remarked, as his scales slowly melted away and returned to his normal human look. “It's unfortunately one more thing Izuku will have to be ready for by the Week’s end.”

“Should I get one of our Beta Sites ready?” She asked.

“No. They know all of them. I’ll have to figure out something else.” He replied, stepping out of the rubble of the Scrapper Pits. “Kinzokumure knows all our hiding spots.”

“We should’ve never made the deal with him.” Mothra remarked with a note of anger in her usually calm voice.

“We have no choice. He’s got too much reach on us.” Godzillo replied, shaking his head morosely. “And without our little movie bis, people would be much more hostile to us then the other heroes.”

It was the unfortunate reality for Kaiju Quirk users. If discrimination was hard against mutant-type Quirks, it was worse for those that were mutants and able to turn gigantic in size. The arrival of the Death Storm and his driving many of them insane to exploit their power was not something many were quick to forgive…

With little left for them, the two went off to prepare what they could for the next step in the plan to deal with the High Commission. They couldn’t fight it of course, so they could simply weather the storm and hope things would get better later for them to take advantage of.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
2 Days from now  
Shigaraki sat at the computer screen, fuming at the idea of just letting the Hero Killer go after he had held two knives to his throat and tried to tear him down and try to dismantle his psyche like some useless shrink. He wanted to get back at him, to show him just what Shigaraki would believe in and seek to accomplish, but he just couldn’t think of anything deep or lofty quiet like the Hero Killer’s own ideals. Maybe he was right about somethings, but Shigaraki would never admit it. Finally, however, he thought of something.

“Master, how are the new group of Nomu coming along?” Shigaraki asked, trying to hide his excitement for the simple but effective plan he had quickly come up with.

“I have finished the behavior modifications of six of them, though they are not quite as powerful as the one in USJ.” Sensei replied, before his tone cold and simple.

“Give them to me.” Shigaraki hissed with barley contained pleasure.

“Why?” Sensei asked, apprehensive of what his apprentice had going forward.

“Because I don’t like that arrogant hero killer you had brought in! And you’ve said it’s my right to destroy whatever I don’t like, right?” Shigaraki replied, sounding as though he was about to lose it right there. “Master?”

After a moment of consideration, The Master finally replied. “Very well, do with them what you like. But you may only have six, understand? Use them well.”

“And what about Riot? I want a Symbiote after that brat from USJ tried to eat me.” Shigaraki demanded.

“Tomura, don’t push for too much. You have three powerful Nomu.” All for One replied sternly, like a lecturing father. “You will get Riot when He and I agree you are ready, not any sooner, understand?”

Shigaraki grumbled slightly, nodding in dissatisfaction. “Fine, whatever you say master.”

He grinned under his face mask, as he stood up from the computer, and turned to meet Kurogiri’s portal, All Might directly sending him the three Nomu, black portals of thick, oil-like slime opening up, as the Nomu came in. Kurogiri narrowed his yellow eyes, but said nothing, as Shigaraki joined him. He had put together the perfect plan to put that hero Killer in his place. Now was just letting Stain do his thing, as Shigaraki put his plan into motion.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Izuku, after finishing the shower and cleaning up from a long hard day, dried himself, and made his way to the Areas Godzillo had pointed to him that acted as a resting/sleeping/personal quarters area. Here was where had and his fellow “Titan Heroes” rested up, watched movies, and did as they liked, while waiting for missions or after training. Godzillo had told him the first three rooms were open, and were free to use at his leisure. 

“I think that training went well.” Venom said within his mind, as Izuku looked at the rooms to use. “I never thought to jump around and all that like a Kroot Warrior.”

“How long have you been alive?” Izuku asked aloud, surprised at the admission.

“Maybe...perhaps….60 million years or so?” Venom said pensively, almost as though he was ashamed of the answer.

“And you never learned to do anything but charge in?” Izuku asked, taken a back by just how old his Symbiote was. For some reason, given his impulsiveness, anger and general lack of old timey wisdom, Izuku thought him younger.

“For many of my years, first hundred, I was scrapping by as a pup and had to gain the strength to face and kill my parent.” Venom explained. “After that, I had to earn my place by blood and claw in Riot’s Strike Force. I never had time to develop anything, because all my foes could be defeated with overwhelming force. Mayhem and Scream always did the more agile, foot work as well, so...”

“You just did the brute force thing, right?” Izuku asked.

“Yeah, basically. Riot was stronger, Scream smarter, Mayhem more agile, but me, I was the rock of the team.” Venom remarked with a hint of pride. “Even if they all looked down on me.”

Izuku nodded slightly. So Venom was pure unrelenting aggression. That might have had something to do with his shift recently in personality, but Izuku couldn’t be too sure. He wanted to ask once he was sure they were away from any listening ears, not wanting to worry the Heroes he was interning with about his Symbiote issue.

Once he was inside, he ducked in, to see a furnished bed, large TV, a Computer and a mini fridge. Izuku furrowed his brow in surprise at the sight. He was sure this was supposed to be like a Barracks, but it looked like a luxury suite instead. There was a sticky note from one of the kaiju. Venom sprang out from Izuku’s hand, taking the note and pulling into sight.

“Dear Green-Nerd, everything’s stocked, so kick back and relax for a few hours at least.’ The Note read. “Lights out at 10. We get up early, so be ready. If I catch you up later then that, I’m sticking your head in a toilet. XOXO, the Fire Demon, Rodan.”

Izuku nodded slightly, still wondering slightly to himself how that one, of all people had convinced him to change his combat styles and how he and Venom operated. Venom seemed slightly confused by the attitude, but simply shrugged it off, as he laid his suitcase on the ground next to the bed. The Symbiote formed a head, looking to him.

“Is something bothering?” Venom asked, as though sensing his unease from the Tournament.

“Yeah actually.” Izuku said as he sat down. “Ever since before the tournament, I’ve been getting these weird...anger spikes. I can’t explain.”

“Like a sudden overwhelming urge to bash skulls in?” Venom asked, as though he had dealt with this before.

“Yeah, you know this?” Izuku asked in surprise. “Is this a reaction or something to you and my body?”

“Of sorts.” Venom said, grinning a little wider. “I thought this would happen sooner, but since I latched onto you as a preteen, it didn’t take full effect yet.”

“What didn’t?” Izuku asked, wishing his Symbiote would get to the point.

“A symbol of our growing closeness. A good host and Symbiote start to influence each other more and more. Our ability to synchronize and act improves, and you gain my more aggressive disposition.” Venom explained. “Scream is better at explaining this, but it has something to do with feeding on the adrenaline in your body and getting into more fights for Phre...that thing in the brain and chocolates.”

“I thought I was going crazy.” Izuku remarked, not sure if this was better then him losing his mind though. If he was going to get more aggressive, how would that effect his hero career in the long run? He began to mutter to himself, yammering on about the potential benefits and costs this could have.

“Anyway, I guess the syncing couldn’t take effect until you hit puberty. Adult hormones and that.” Venom explained. “It will make us more attuned. This is a beautiful moment.”

Hearing Venom call anything beautiful was jarring to say the least for Izuku, much less this moment. Syncing in with him could always help. After all, without Venom, he wouldn’t be here. But he had had the urge, for however brief, to attack even people he considered friends. Would this get more intense as the sync happened? Would Venom always be able to keep him in line if Izuku himself couldn’t? He was always eager to fight, so what if he just sat back and let Izuku hurt people?

His phone vibrated, as he lurched in surprise, pulling it up and seeing it was from Uraraka. He smiled for a moment, softly, as Venom leaned into his ear. “Oh? Has your pulse quickened?”

“No? Why would it? I don’t know what you’re talking about!?” Izuku yelled a little too loud, as someone hit the wall between his room and the next.

“Oi! Keep it down!” Rodan yelled, as Izuku blushed slightly.

“Everything of yours is my business.” Venom hissed, grinning. “I know how you look at her.”

Izuku said nothing, merely shaking his head, as he answered, voice cracking a hint. “Ah, hi, Uraraka, is everything ok?”

“Yeah, I was about to hit the sack for the night, and I just wanted to call you and the rest to make sure everything was alright.” She explained cheerfully. “Tokoyami is still busy with Hawks, and Iida seemed bothered by um...y’know...”

Izuku nodded slightly. He needed to see and talk with him soon. This wasn’t like him. He was bottling things up too much for it to be healthy.

“So, how are things with you?” Uraraka asked.

“Oh, good. Very good. Very very good.” Izuku said nervously, blushing redder then before. “Godzillo and his fellow heroes are really putting me through the ringer.”

“Oh, same! Gunhead is a really good teacher, and surprisingly adorable.” Uraraka said, Izuku raising an eyebrow at the last statement, but said nothing.

“Yeah, Godzillo really helped me apply Venom in a new way. I think I still need to work somethings out, but I think it will improve some of my abilities when it comes time for another fight.” Izuku remarked, before someone hit the wall again.

“I helped too!” Rodan yelled through the walls in anger.

“I should probably go soon, I have to get to bed soon,” Uraraka said, stiffing a yawn. “I got a busy day tomorrow.”

“Same actually.” Izuku said, a little too quickly, before a lull hit the conversation. The two sat awkwardly, listening to the other but neither saying anything.

Izuku and Uraraka nervously shifted and tried to think of something to say, Venom silently screaming in annoyance at his host’s inability to say anything.

“Well, good night!” She said quickly.

“Good Night!” Izuku replied, both ending the call, as Venom hissed deep within his “throat” in agitation,

“By Knull’s bones, we have to work on your ability to speak to Ochako!” Venom growled, shaking his head in disgust. “You’re pathetic! I’ll need offspring from you when I start my Reproductive cycles again, and I can’t get there if you’re this much of a dork!”

“I didn’t know what to say!” Izuku said, miserably, before he gave the Symbiote and odd look. “Wait, Reproductive?”

“When the right season comes, I eat a bunch, produce a seed, and when it hatches, it will form a new Symbiote that will break off from me.” Venom said nonchalantly. “Don’t worry about it. It’ll take a few more years before my next one.”

“I hope you don’t eat them.” Izuku said with some revulsion, still recalling the horrific and downright barbaric ritual the Symbiotes followed in their worlds. It was not something he wanted to see personally.

“Since I’m on my own, I can do as I like. Not bound by Klyntarii culture any longer.” Venom replied, seemingly thinking over what the idea. “I wonder what actually raising my kids will be like?”

“It’s not for a few more years. I think we can think about other things.” Izuku replied, partially not wanting to cross the bridge of parenthood yet, and partially because he didn’t want to think about Uraraka like that. At least, he didn’t want to. As Venom had pointed out before, he had seen Izuku’s more….questionable dreams.

“True. Hopefully they all turn out better then Carnage.” Venom remarked, as he retreated into Izuku’s body. “Disappointing kids is one thing, but he’s….his very existence is a mark of shame to us all.”

“What has he done though?” Izuku thought, as he began to get ready for sleep.

“I wouldn’t tell you. We’re about to sleep. I want your dreams to be filled with puppies, sunshines and rainbows, not slaughter.” Venom replied, before chuckling. “And Ochako. Hehe. I know how much you like dreams with her...”

Izuku flushed red once more, as he went to sleep once more, falling asleep almost as soon as he hit the pillow, and dozing off, partially from just how busy his entire day had been, and partially from Venom manipulating some of the chemicals in his brain to speed up the sleep process.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Day Two of Internships  
Izuku was sleeping well at first, the night skies still hanging over the city, barely any light even as the night began to fade to the first vestiges of the early sun. Izuku rolled over, still deep asleep without a care in the world for anything, until someone practically smashed the door done, screaming inside.

“Oi, OI! OI!! Get up Midoriya, damn it! We got a bunch of shit to do, and then even more shit!” Rodan practically screamed within, the entire building shaking on it’s foundations, Izuku was sure of it. “Get up and get washed up, we’re making breakfast, and then sparring some more!”

Izuku groaned, as he sat up, shaking off what little sleep was left, before he suddenly felt his entire body spike with alertness and a readiness to fight, though he wasn’t exactly sure what he would be fighting. He looked around in confusion for a moment, before Venom’s voice filled his ears once more, everywhere and nowhere at once.

“Apologies, Deku, I tried to help you get up, I hope that didn’t startle you.” Venom explained coolly.

“It’s fine.” He remarked, looking around, before grabbing his phone and quickly looking it over. “Have you been using this again?”

“Yes. I wished to find if any of my peers were still alive.” Venom explained. “I do not wish to encounter them unprepared, but all I found was a mysterious massacre at a meat processing plant.”

“Do you think it’s important?” Izuku asked, as he got up and made his way to the washing areas.

“Anything could be important, even something as strange as this.” Venom explained, before shrinking back into his corner of their mind to think. “It can’t be Riot, he would’ve left other sites of butchery, and not stopped at just the Plant. Could it be Scream or Mayhem then?”

izuku made his way into the locker rooms, taking note that, despite the sliver metal and professional work done to make it look appealing, had several scorch marks, shatter floor tiles, and even what looked like two horn gauges in part of the ceiling. It appeared monster heroes had trouble staying well behaved, no matter where they went.

He quickly finished up, cleaning off, brushing his team and getting ready to head out, before he spoke to Venom, making sure they were alone before talking outloud.

“Of your team, which one would you prefer to encounter?” Izuku asked.

“Are you afraid of the worst?” Venom asked, sounding more worried then Izuku was used to.

“I just want to be ready.” He replied, as he fitted his costume on.

Venom considered his question for a moment, before nodding. “Riot was sheer brute force and malevolent intelligence. He enjoyed tearing Symbiote from host, then flesh from host-bone, any challenger killed with cruelty that only my child Carnage could match. Many took to calling him the “Hammer of Knull”, for his brutality.”

“Lovely.” Izuku remarked, rolling his eyes.

“Mayhem is not as strong as I, but far faster and more willing to strike at the heart. If she fights you, it will be after flaying the corpses of all you hold dear, and toying with your heart” Venom explained further. “Scream is closer to I in...temperament, regarding hosts and our relationships with them. She is loyal to the mission, but I think would speak if I approached. She as strong as my fourth child, so a direct battle would not go in our favor.”

“So none of them are peop...beings we want to fight?” Izuku asked, shifting his weight slightly at Venom’s detailed explanation. None of them sounding like beings they could take, or would want to. Was it being overpowered by Scream, smashed apart and tortured by Riot, or having everyone he cherished ripped to shreds by Mayhem.

“We train further, and we will come out on top.” Venom hissed, sounding more like he was trying to convince himself more then anything.

Izuku wasn’t so sure, but made his way to the training grounds, where Godzillo and Rodan awaited him, the smaller Hero, leaning against a wall, readjusting his aviator jacket slightly, as the two looked to see Izuku approaching. Godzillo rubbed his hands together slightly, the fringes of his face and body beginning to transform into scales as Izuku got closer.

“We’ll have one last match, alright?” Godzillo explained, pointing to the Scrapper Pits, now freshly prepared and repaired for another round of fighting. “After that, I want you to fight Rodan here.”

“Him, am I ready?” Izuku asked, looking slightly worried.

“You fought me, didn’t ya? And he’ll be holding back like I was.” Godzillo remarked, before gesturing to him with his thumb. “Besides, you can’t fight me for two days straight. You’ll develop bad habits I miss. You have to be ready to fight any kind of foe. Either power types like me, or the agile ones like Rodey.”

“It’s Rodan or the Fire Demon!” Rodan shrieked in rage, before Godzillo lifted a hand to shut him up.

“Anyway, multiple partners in fighting improves your abilities, same with teachers.” Godzillo explained, as he began to head to the scrapper pits. “Now, follow.”

He tossed away his jacket, turning into the larger reptilian form he was known for, as he stepped onto the platform leading into the pits, as Venom encased Izuku’s body, claws clicking together slightly, as he clenched them and then unclenched them, the two preparing themselves for this.

It would be many more hours spent fighting first Godzillo, then, trying to learn and adapt to all of Rodan’s movements and attacks. In that time, Izuku and Venom had many more chances to put to work their increased mobility and movement attacks, at the cost being thrown through quite a few models and pieces of equipment Godzillo had used.

By the time the morning came to an end, Izuku was nearly drained of his energy, and Venom was close to running out of energy himself, squirming slightly as he retreated into Izuku’s staggering frame, trying to preserve as much energy as he could to keep from eating away at his Host’s organs. Godzillo seemed to sense his student’s drainage, and slammed his massive hands together twice. Rodan had proven trickier to beat. Even holding back, he was merciless in his assaults, and Venom was having difficulty adapting to his speed and strength.

“You’ve done alright, for now.” Godzillo declared, gesturing over his shoulder as he approached the drained student. “We’ll eat, rest, and go at this again, got it?”

Izuku nodded, as he numbly followed behind the two, Godzillo keeping a watchful eye on him, before turning to his compatriot, his face stoic as always, but his voice low and angry.

“I thought I told you to not go all out, his body can quickly get torn apart from overuse.” Godzillo grunted to him, leaning into Rodan’s face.

“He’s the one pushing me. After the first fight, I couldn’t hold back, I had to put some more grease in my movements.” Rodan said, turning to eye him for a bit, before turning back to Godzillo. “He reminds me of you, actually. Same dumbass, no holding back bullshit you like to do.”

Godzillo looked at him for a moment, taken aback, but said nothing, merely nodding as they continued on. There would be time to discuss Izuku’s zeal and foolhardiness when the time came, but for now, they would just eat and relax, and let the bruises heal before they went at it again.  
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As time went on, the second day would go on largely the same as the first. Izuku found himself fighting with his hosts, then, once Godzillo was satisfied, would have him practice new moves, attacks and other things on test dummies and giving him tips and tricks to use on the battlefield. Right now was one of the those moments.

“Ok, so you can shoot out pieces of yourself as tendrils and all, but can they be detached?” Godzillo asked him after they had finished eating and resting up for the second time in the day.

“I’ve never thought about it.” Izuku admitted, scratching his chin. “Venom has only so much mass, I wonder if it would harm us.”

“Tiny pieces ought to work good.” Godzillo suggested, still in human form, before pointing to his face. “Try and shoot a piece out and over my mouth. Block off any speaking.”

“What about breathing?” Izuku asked, worried about accidentally murdering his teacher.

“Well don’t block the nose, that’s pretty obvious.” Godzillo remarked with a roll of his eyes.

Izuku had Venom turn his left hand into a black claw, before shooting out a tentacle, slapping over Godzillo’s closed mouth. Venom shifted silently in his body, but said nothing, before the tentacle separated and left a small piece of itself over his mouth. Nakajima tried to remove the piece of flesh, but found it rather difficult. Finally, after a moment, he activated part of his quirk and melted away the piece of Symbiote goo with blue flames from his jaws.

“We have more to work on it looks like,” He remarked, looking to Izuku. “That was good, your first time, correct?”

“Yeah, we usually just smashed anything in our way.” Izuku explained.

“I see. But so far you’ve done a good job overcoming those habits.” Godizllo replied,looking down curiously at the remaining Symbiote matter is it turned to flakes and blew away, then looking back to Izuku. “Finding new ways to use Venom in a fight will improve what you can do drastically.”

Izuku nodded slightly, looking at his Venom-coated hand, before looking back to Godzillo. “Nakajima-Sensai, I wanted to ask, why did you take me on?”

“I...” He began to scold Izuku for calling him that, before shrugging it off. “I said because your power reminds me of mine. I saw potential.”

“Yeah, but you’ve got to have other people to take on, those with giant Quirks or giant monster powers, or something.” He suggested.

Godzillo scratched his chin for a moment, thinking over his question. “I’d be lying if I said that was the only reason. But I want to talk about that later, after we’re finished with Internships.”

Izuku shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other, unsure of how even to take that statement. Godzillo seemed to sense some unease, before gesturing back to the training areas.

“Come on, we still got a few more hours of training.” Godzillo replied.

They went back to the sparing and using the practice dummies, as Godzillo watched his student at work and try to apply his newest lessons and abilities in actual ‘combat’. He would have to work on improving this one’s abilities, but for now, the days in the training halls ended. There was only to take him on patrol and get him to work out his kinks in a real life situation, in a real fight.

‘Later, Izuku, I’ll reveal what I know to you, when this all ends.’ Godzillo thought stoically, watching him at work. ‘Until then, I’ll make you and your Symbiote stronger. You’ll both be great heroes.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this one took so long. I just Swtor, and have developed a complete addiction to it. But I finally finished this one. Something I wanted to talk about earlier was my choice to use Godzillo as the training figure. For one, I wanted to take Izuku in a slightly different direction from canon, but it also came from another fanfic idea I had, where Godzillo is actually Izuku's father and helps him and all (You know, Hisashi being able to breath fire, green, on a business trip away from home), but I decided to just meld it with this one. Hisashi is a separate character, but Godzillo will be acting surrogate father, and once he gets One for All, All Might will also be taking the role again.
> 
> Kinzokumure is the Suit that's been trailing Izuku for a bit, and his name roughly means "Iron Swarm", relating to his Quirk. He's going to be something of a secondary antagonist outside of Shigaraki and the League in the coming story arcs, as well as his mysterious boss.


	19. Hero Killer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku and Venom face the Hero Killer in full battle.

On the third day of the internship, Godzillo, to Izuku’s surprise, did not have them continue their fighting and sparring matches. Instead he threw on his long white coat and gestured for Izuku to follow him.

“Izuku, I’m going out hunting.” He said soundly, as he held up his car keys. “Let’s go.”

“What, already? Hunting?” Izuku said nervously, as he followed behind him.

“Bad choice of words.” Venom mumbled within his head.

Godzillo simply shrugged, face unmoving. “You fight me or my comrades too much, you’ll develop bad habits. I’ll find you some low level meat and let you practice on them.”

Izuku followed behind him, as Godzillo got his car unlocked and ready to go, before turning to his student. “We go to Hosu. Tokyo here is low on crime, and few people have stuck around. Hosu has more people.”

Izuku nodded as he got into the passenger's seat, clicking on his seat belt, as Nakajima started the car. He was slightly worried. The Hero Killer had been sighted several times, and murdered and crippled several Heroes, including Ingenium, in Hosu. To go there felt like they were going into the Lion’s den. Venom of course had no issue with that.

“We’ll have to be careful in alleyways.” Godzillo remarked, as he started up the car and backed away from the lot. “I don’t want you fighting Stain until I think you’re ready. And you’re not, by the way.”

Izuku nodded slightly, before remembering that Tenya had sighed up to Intern at Hosu as well. He wondered if he would get to meet up with Tenya later or during the patrols and catch up with him. He really needed someone to talk to about what had happened with his brother, that much was obvious. Izuku wasn’t sure what to say or even if he should brooch the subject, but when Tenya was ready, he’d be there.  
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In Hosu City, meanwhile, Iida and Manual were continuing on their scheduled patrols through the city. Iida’s armor and helmet helped hide some of the jitters he got, especially his constant glancing out the corners of his eyes to every alley, every dark corner, that could hide the man he butchered his brother like he was meat to be carved up. He almost began shaking at the thought again, before focusing back on the mission ahead. Simple as it was, he would focus on it before his vengeance could be accomplished.

“Just another day of patrolling, sorry it’s nothing too exciting.” Manual remarked, giving a shrug as they continued on.

“No, it’s actually...it’s better this way.” Iida replied, looking down another alley.

Manual stopped for a moment, as the passers-by filed out and thinned out around them. “Hey, I’d hate to ask this, since it’s a little personal, but...”

Iida looked down, eyes glaring at the ground, as he ground his teeth together. “You’re after the hero killer aren’t you?”

“Well….” He began shamefully. 

“I couldn’t think of another reason you’d choose my agency. I’m honored beyond words, but don’t forget, heroes aren’t supposed to be motivated by personal grudges.” Manual said, face and voice becoming deathly serious. “We heroes don’t make arrests, we just stop villains and leave the arrests to the police. If you’re caught going off on your own, that’s a serious crime. A major crime.”

Iida looked up, his body still tense, as Manual quickly lifted up his hand and began speaking more lightly. “But listen, I’m not saying Stain gets off easy or anything, it’s just that you seem so intense, and focused, I was just worried.”

“I appreciate the warning.” Iida said, hollowly, as Manual turned to continue the patrols, back to his usual upbeat mood.

Iida stood there, fists slowly clenching as he shook in rage. ‘However….However...What do I do with this urge, this feeling?!’  
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The portal opened onto the building where Kurogiri had first found Stain, the Hero Killer and Shigaraki stepping out onto the top of the building, overlooking the entire city, the lights beginning to come on as the sun began to dip away. Shigaraki looked over the entire city with a quiet, tired disdain for it all.

“So this is Hosu huh? A lot livelier then I thought it would be.” Shigaraki muttered.

Stain, however, looked at it all with the zeal and fiery ambition of a preacher ready to attend to his flock. “I will reform this town, but I need more sacrifices to get it done.”

“The necessary task you spoke of earlier, correct?” Kurogiri asked, as his smoke-like body shifted and twisted upon itself, back into a humanoid form.

“Now you’re someone I can get through to.” Stain muttered, shooting Shigaraki a scornful gaze.

“Always picking on me.” Grumbled Shigaraki, rolling his shoulder, as he wished, again, that he had the Symbiote Riot like his master had promised. He would crush Stain’s skull under his foot, shred his body with claws and….

His daydream was interrupted once more by Stain’s declarations. “The title of Hero was reserved for those who performed truly great deeds! Today, too many undeserving fakes play the part, obsessed with money and fame!”

He jumped down, preparing to make his way through the city. “Until this society wakes up and corrects itself, I will continue my blood work.”

Shigaraki watched with hatred as Stain jumped down, heading into the rest of the city and disappearing into the darkness below, before turning to Kurogiri, scratching at the side of his neck.

“All the high and mighty talk, and he hasn’t gone beyond the small potatoes stage. It’s almost sad.” Shigaraki muttered with a hint of pride at his earlier foray into UA.

“I would not criticize him just yet Shigaraki,” Kurogiri cautioned, as the younger villain looked at him in confusion. “In cities where the Hero Killer has appeared, there have been across the board drops in crime and increased Hero activity and awareness.”

“Well ain’t that just swell, right? Hero Killer, more like Hero Breeder!” Shigaraki scuffed, shaking his head. “I knew it, we’re just too different to make allies.”

He turned back to the city, folding his arms in anger. “Kurogiri, bring out the Nomu.”

Kurogiri obediently shifted and turned, reforming into a portal again, as Shigaraki shook his head. “As if I’d let him get away with stabbing me like that. If he wants his rampage, he can have it. We’ll see who causes more destruction by the end of the night.”

“I’ll crush your dignity and pride Stain!” Shigaraki declared, as the three large, misshapen forms of the Nomu lumbered in silently behind, towering over him, and adorned with muscled frames, wings and other inhuman features.  
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After driving through Tokyo, Godzillo and Izuku ended up taking one of the bullet trains into Hosu, Godzillo needing to stop off at the nearest police station, turn in some paper work and make sure everything was squared away before they began their patrols. The city needed to at least be aware of what a new Hero was about to do before they just jumped in.

Godzillo seemed slightly nervous, sitting in a train. Izuku didn’t want to ask why, but he would get his answer anyway.

“I have a track record for getting trains destroyed in my work.” He remarked, looking out the window at the city. “Hopefully kharma doesn’t come back to bite me.”

Izuku sat confused for a moment, before realizing he was telling a joke, and laughed a little, before checking his phone again. He looked over the messages sent to Iida, and found he didn’t answer any of them yet. Godzillo seemed to sense some unease in him.

“Everything alright kid?” He asked, raising an eyebrow. “You’ve been on your phone a bit.”

“One of my friends, he’s not responding to his messages, and it usually takes him three minutes exactly to reply back.” Izuku explained.

“Punctual at least.” Godizllo remarked with a shrug. “He’s probably busy and...”

He suddenly fell silent, stiffening, as his hair seemed to stand on end, gaining a spiked visage similar to the spines in his kaiju form, as his eyes turned blood red-orange, looking around the train for a moment. Izuku looked at him in confusion for a moment, before looking around as well.

“Nakajima-Sensei, are you alright?” He asked, worried over his teacher’s behavior. ‘Do you sense anything Venom?’

“Not a thing, but my sixth sense doesn’t give off warnings until a few seconds before the incident.” Venom replied.

“Sorry, Quirk acting up.”Nakajima explained, looking around still.

The intercoms came on, the conductor trying to sound calm and relaxed. “Passengers, you’ll have to excuse us, but we must make an emergency stop due to unforeseen circumstances.”

An explosion sounded in the distance, as Izuku stiffened and looked out the window again, Godzillo getting to his feet, and quickly reverting to his Kaiju form, staying somewhat human sized at least while within the passengers looked at him in confusion for a moment, before the entire train seemed to explode, shaking with such force, Izuku would’ve been thrown out his seat had he not worn his seatbelt.

“Enemies Izuku! Prepare for battle!” Venom shouted into his brain, giving him barely anytime to shake off the shock of the explosion or the fact his body was now being taken over.

From the now gaping hole in the train, a hero had landed in the rubble and wreckage of the train, everyone gaping at him in confusion, as Godzillo rose his voice.

“Everyone, step away from the hero and the wreckage!” He barked, as the train shook again, something latching onto the side and making it’s way to the hole. Godzillo shook his head, giving his long coat a tug of the collar, as he stepped towards the breach. “Yare yare daze, this better not be the MUTOs again...”

A light blue creature, of thin, whipcord muscle jumped into the breach, brain exposed, four wide eyes seemingly jammed into it’s head, it’s small, teeth-filled maw bent in a blank expression. It wore only pants, as it’s inhumanly long, dangling arms carefully held onto the sides of the hole. Godzillo’s lip curled back in disgust. The slight smell of rotted meat hit his nostrils as the creature climbed inside.

“Another Nomu?” Venom growled in surprise, stepping forward to face him. “I thought the guy at UA was Nomu, as in his name and…?”

“It seems it’s not a name but a category.” Godzillo remarked, left hand snapping outwards to stop Venom. “Kid, stay put for a bit. I’ll clear it out, then you get to another hero team.”

“How…?” Izuku began, as the Nomu lunged at one of the passengers, before Godzillo ran and slammed into the creature with the force to shatter a brick wall.

He grabbed it by the shoulder and lunged forward, biting down on it’s neck and pushing forward, and into the breach, falling into the streets below. Venom ran to the breach, looking down in surprise at how fast such a large hero could move. He turned back, vision modifying itself to scan the crowds, looking for any internal injuries that would need to be taken care of, but found nothing. Even the downed hero just seemed to have a bump on the head, and broken leg.

Venom turned back, looking out, as more explosions hit the city, fires burning in the districts, and smoke rose in massive plumes. Izuku was taken aback, but Venom did not wait, jumping into action and extending his tendrils outwards, swinging from building to building, Izuku thinking of Iida. While he was tempted to think he would be fine with his own agency, Izuku had the creeping suspicion that something more was at work here, something that threatened Iida as well.

“Should we go to another Hero Group?” Izuku asked.

“Your friend is after the Hero Killer. If either finds the other, our orders won’t matter.” Venom hissed, smashing into the side of a building, claws crushing the bricks beneath, as he jumped off and smashed onto the top of another building. “We secure Iida, and get him out of any trouble he’s been looking for.”

As Izuku and Venom continued along the cityscape, Tenya and Manual looked around in surprise as alarms sounded in the distance, and explosions tore through the area. The older hero began to race off towards the explosions.

“Tenya, follow me!” Manual yelled, running off and not noticing Iida’s frozen in his steps.

Iida turned to the alleyway, something dark and malefic within the alley, almost inhuman murderous intent and violent impulses seeming to hang in the air without a word or sign of anyone within. He ran in, rushing as quickly as he could. If asked, right then and there, or long after, Iida wouldn’t have been able to explain why or how he had known what was within. It was just a feeling, deep down in his heart, that someone needed help.

Stain held the Hero Native by the face, pressing him against a cold brick wall, as he turned to the sound of explosions and sirens going off. He grunted in annoyance, narrowing his eyes.

“So much damn noise. What the heck is that idiot doing?” Stain grumbled, shaking his head, before turning back to his latest victim. “I’ll deal with him later. After I take care of what I came here for.”

Native stood there, frozen and at Stain’s mercy, unable to move a muscle, jaws locked in horror and fright. “If you are a hero, choose your last words well.”

He flicked his Katana outwards, before noticing Native’s eyes seemed to flicker to something behind him. He heard the slight intake of breath, the soft but noticeable smack of boots against the cold concrete ground. He turned his head only a little, flicking his blade outwards and striking the approaching attacker, who had interrupted his great work. His blade struck the helmet and knocked Iida back, a scar carved into the side of the helmet, as he knocked back, rolling over his back, and coming up to his knees, surprised at how fast Stain had reacted.

“A kid in a costume?” He questioned aloud, wondering if this was some street punk Vigilante, like the ones in Naruhata, or a young hero too eager to have sense. He merely shook his head. “Get outta here kid. This is no place for children.”

“A scarf red as blood, armed to the teeth with various blades, hidden from view in an alleyway.” Tenya remarked, rising to his feet, eyes focused and completely consumed in rage and focused on Stain. “Truth is, I’ve been pursuing you, but I never expected this to happen so soon!”

Stain flicked his blade out, inches from Iida’s face. “Your voice is talking heroics, but your eyes tell me your looking for vengeance. Watch your mouth, or your age won’t keep you off my list of targets.”

“Keep me off? So I’m not even a threat to you!” Iida barked back, rising to his feet fully, looking him right in the eye. “Listen here, Criminal, I am the younger brother of a hero you crippled, an amazing hero among heroes. Remember the name, for the short time you have left.”

He stood up fully,fists clenched. “I am Ingenium, the Hero who will bring you to justice!”

Stain considered his words for only a second. “That so? Time to die!”  
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Godzillo threw the Nomu over his shoulder, smashing through the steps leading into an apartment, as tow nearby civilians jumped back. He lumbered forward. Holding back his full power was sometimes more a chore then going all out, but going the full 100 meters would be overkill.

‘Besides, been a long time since I got to clubber a villain who was sporting buzzsaws, drills, oxygen destroying chemicals, or gravity powers.’ He thought, fangs barred in a savage grin. ‘This’ll be fun!’

The Nomu lifted it’s palm and swung forward, giving him a smack that would’ve sent even a man his size and half his weight flying, but merely shrugged it off and charged right in, grabbing the creature by the neck and shoulder, and digging his claws in, thick, oil-like blood dripping from it’s wounds as he tossed the Nomu aside. It landed with the force to leave a crater in the ground, sending up dirt and debris, as Godzillo made his way to the creature as quickly as he could. He expected the Nomu to stay down for a bit. He had hit beasts like him with greater force and knocked them out for hours.

He was surprised then, when the creature sprang up again, it’s claw wounds mending, as it looked around, before bolting towards the two humans, completely ignoring the Hero it was fighting just a few seconds ago. Hardly wasting a moment, Godzillo ran as fast he could, speed not being one of his strongpoints. 

‘It reacts to whatever is closest. I can’t do any throws or tosses then.’ He thought, spines flickering blue, as he narrowed his eyes.

Suddenly, the air heated up, as a blast of fire exploded out from the shadows and hit the creature, forcing it onto the ground, the thing shrieking in pain and rage, before collapsing. A familiar figure, dressed in black and dark blue approached, body covered in flames along the top of his head and beard as he approached.

“I was looking for the Hero Killer in this city, and I guess my timing is unlucky tonight.” The man declared, looking at Godzillo with a disdainful smirk. “I see you came down from your movie sets and parties to do actual Hero work now. If this one is too much, just stay back and watch a real pro at work.”

Godzillo narrowed his eyes, baring his fangs in anger, before calming himself. “Endeavor, let’s not do this here. We’ve got other fish to fry.”

Endeavor nodded slightly, stroking his fiery mustache. “True enough. We have others to deal with, further in the city.”  
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Izuku moved through the crowds, most parting and getting out of his way to let him through, having Venom retreat and disappear into his body, allowing him to pass as normal until he needed him out. He looked down each alley, trying to spot anything, bloodstains, glint of armor or blades, any sign of someone within, along with Venom trying to detect any living flesh and blood within. Everytime, he had gotten nothing.

‘Another Nomu, in the same city as the hero killer. Does that mean there’s connection?’ Izuku thought quickly, as he ran through the streets, continuing his search.

“Do they even share goals? The Shigaraki guy seemed more concerned with show boating then any deeper drives.” Venom suggested. “Doesn’t Hero killer have some wider goal?”

Izuku came to a stop, shocked and horrified at the sight before him. Another two Nomu creatures were unleashed upon the city, one thing and wiry like the one before, but with wings and tanned skin, and the other towering and black, with no eyes and only a lower jaw, like a slightly smaller version of the Nomu from UA.

“Iida? Iida! Where are you?” A hero in blue yelled, directing water from a fire hydrant towards the flames raging behind one of the Nomu.

‘That’s his trainer, his mentor, and he’s not here.’ Izuku thought quickly, looking around, as a female hero pushed past him.

“Stay put, let the professionals handle this!” She yelled to him.

The heroes continued to try and hold the beasts back, as the largest set it’s sights on the nearest hero.

“What the heck are these made out of? We’ve thrown everything at them and they keep coming!” A hero yelled, as Izuku darted off.

“What are the hell are you doing?” Venom demanded in anger.

‘We have to find Iida, he’s in danger!” Izuku declared, going as fast as his legs could manage.

“Fine, but there had better be good snacks.” Venom hissed.

Atop the tall building in Hosu, Shigaraki looked over the carnage through his binoculars, smiling to himself with joy. Seeing all the destruction and mayhem, all the carnage and misery, it was almost too good to be true. Even without the Symbiote he so deserved, knowing his rival would soon be forgoten, not able to do as much damage as he could, was enough for Shigaraki's twisted tastes.

“Excellent my Nomu.” He hissed to himself, lowering the binoculars to take in the flames before him. They made such exquisite pets and servants, his Nomu.

“I take it you’re staying out of the fight?” Kurogiri inquired.

“Of course I’m staying out you idiot, I’m injured.” Shigaraki snapped, before grinning again, Kurogiri shrugging off his outburst. “but that’s why I had the master give me them!”

They fell silent as they watched the Nomus continue their rampage across the city. Shigaraki broke into a fit of laughter as he held his arms out before him, like a Cult leader surveying his loyal flock.

“By tomorrow the world will have forgotten all about you, Hero Killer!”  
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Iida did not waste a second, charging straight into Stain with everything he had, jets roaring behind him, as tongues of blue flame shot out. It was a blinding fast blitz, few, even among top athletes could’ve had trouble dodging. Unfortunately, Stain was more then an athlete, his training beyond what Tenya had received so far. He wait til just the right moment, before jumping overhead. Iida was an excellent student of course, one of the strongest and fastest.

But he was acting on emotion and rage, Stain was simply the better now at judging the situation.

As he passed over Tenya’s head, he glared down at him coldly. “Ingenium huh? I used him to get the rumors going.”

He swung his leg out, the toes of his combat boots covered in small spikes, and struck into Tenya’s left arm, blood spurting out. “You’re still too weak.”

He used Tenya’s pain and distraction to rise up and get the leverage he needed, before swinging his other foot down, planting the bottom of his other boot firmly on the back of Tenya’s head, and pushing downwards, forcing him to the ground, as he lifted up his katana. With both on the ground, he brought the blade down on Tenya’s other arm, his screams erupting through the alley, for no one beyond them to hear.

“Both you and your brother...hah...are weak.” Stain muttered with a disdainful sigh. “It’s because…hah...you’re fake heroes.”

“Shut up evildoer!” Tenya yelled back in rage. “It’s because of you, his spinal cord has irreversible damage! He’ll never walk again! He’ll never be a Hero again!”

Tenya continued on, as Stain looked, face unmoving as his attitude. “He was a great Hero! A leader! You had no reason to do what you did!”

Stain looked at him with disgust, but could understand the way he thought. After all, bad soil produced bad crops. As was his duty, he would have to prone and purge the weak and despoiled parts to make for a better society. This boy was a corrupted seed. To let him go any further would do more harm then good.

“I’ll kill you for what you did!” Tenya yelled.

“First, save him.” Stain remarked, shaking his head in disgust. This kid wanted to be a hero, and he acted like this? “You claim to be a Hero, but you put your own desires and selfish motivations before anyone else, using your power for it’s own sake.”

Tenya’s eyes fell on the still frozen form of Native, the Hero Stain had first targeted, as the Hero Killer lifted his blade up. Tenya, a small part of him was ashamed of how far he had fallen, the truth in Stain’s word, but refused to believe he was right in anyway. He still had to defeat this scum, still had to avenge his brother. Stain merely angled the blade just over his back, right in an area that would instantly kill him. He was flawed, but, a child deserved at least an instant death.

“Consider yourself...hah...an offering to betterment...hah…of society!” He declared, as he prepared to bring the blade down in one precision strike.

“Shut up...Shut up! You’re only just a criminal who hurt my brother!” Tenya yelled at the top of his lungs, as something sounded overhead, like meat and bone being smashed into with full force.

Stain felt the blow as he saw it, knocked away with such stunning force, it could’ve knocked out a lesser man for a week, as Izuku landed in front of Iida’s locked down body.

“Iida! We’re here to save you! Me and my Other!” Izuku announced, his right hand and both legs coated in the slimy biomass of Venom.

Stain staggered back, shocked by the attack but not out. He had taken worse in training and in real battles. He looked up for a moment, before backing up again, narrowing his eyes. ‘That’s the kid from the Villain Brat’s photo!’

“Midoriya, how?” Tenya managed after a moment, as Izuku stood in front of him.

“I remember on TV, that 60% of the Hero Killer’s attacks took place in dark alleys with low sight,” Izuku explained quickly. “I just had to keep looking, and using Venom to detect any life signs.”

Izuku looked to his friend, who was still on the ground, pinned by some unseen force. He looked confused for a moment, before taking a breath. “Can you move, Tenya?”

“No, he cut me, it must be his Quirk.” Tenya managed through his grinted teeth. “Listen, Midoriya, don’t interfere. This doesn’t involve you!”

Izuku was silent for a moment, as Venom’s head popped out of his shoulder, growling in disgust at Tenya. “Bah! Dumbass! We came to save your from being carved meat, so take it!”

Venom broke into mumbled, half-heard Alien curses, in Alien languages from this galaxy, Andromeda, and countless others, as Stain shook off the daze form the assault, and stood up fully, shaking his head at Iida.

“A friend shows up to save you and says, ‘I’m here to save you!’ and stands ready to fight.” Stain muttered, giving his Katana a sadistic twirl. “But it’s my duty to purge these two. If we have to fight and die, the weaker of us will be CULLED.”

Izuku shuddered, Venom retreating into his body, at the gaze he unleashed, his bloodshot locked on Izuku as he shook in terror. This wasn’t like the thugs at UA who would talk big and rob a granny for a few Yen to get by and buy some drugs and burgers. This was a real serial killer.

‘Can we do this?’ He thought in terror, his face blanching under the pressure of Stain’s glare.

“Of course we can, pussy!” Venom snapped in anger. “We faced the Nomu, now grow some balls and get ready, your friend needs us!”

With Native and Iida knocked down, Izuku couldn’t escape. They were both vulnerable, and just running, even with Venom’s strength and speed, to leave Stain to kill again, wouldn’t be what a hero would want or do. But he had to do something, buy time for help to arrive. With a silent command, Venom’s tendrils went behind his back, and began to pull out his phone and type out a message to everyone else in class, already added to his contacts, and sending them out, hoping someone would get his coordinates and location. With that done, Izuku stepped forward, despite still shaking in fear.

“No! I told you to leave!” Iida protested, as Venom snapped out of Izuku’s shoulder again.

“Do you not understand what it means to save your ass, idiot?” Venom snapped, as Izuku shot him an apologetic look. 

“What can I say when you say stuff like that? I mean, I have a lot to say about what you’ve done,” Izuku said, taking a fighting stance. “But right now, like what All Might always says, giving help when it’s not desired is the essence of a true hero!”

Stain grinned in absolute joy at the sight. He was terrified beyond words, but this boy still stood before a terrifying Vigilante like himself to protect what he valued, and followed the words of All Might. In such a corrupted, disgusting society, this was one worthy seed to be cultivated and protected. Izuku stood for a moment, before Venom overtook his head, enveloping him in a blackened suit of rage and bloodlust, claws stretching and flexing as he snapped his jaws twice, saliva of green and silver flicked about.

“Ah, the Jet Black Vigilante! Another who seeks to reform this twisted society.” Stain said, narrowing his eyes as he studied him. “I didn’t think you were a Hero Student, but we don’t need to fight.”

Venom looked at him in confusion, as much as his visage could maanged, as Stain continued on.

“You protected the weak, the Lethal Protector of the homeless and poor of Japan’s streets against crooks and criminals, killing them to ensure the most vulnerable are never targeted again. They call you the Vagrant King even,” Stain explained, flicking his blade to clean the blood off. “You fight for the powerless and downtrodden, as I fight to see heroes made pure and righteous in their actions. We both better society.”

“We are not Jet Black, We are Venom,” Venom growled, looking at the figure curiously. “But we both seek to improve society. At least.”

“It’s unlikely you’re a newcomer. Two identical Quirks like that? Not a coincidence.” Stain remarked, leveraging his blade for battle. “But if you want to improve society, let me kill these two. They sully the name of Heroes and will only weaken others in their folly.”

“No, this one has a family waiting for him, despite him being a stubborn jackass.” Venom hissed, indicating Iida’s prone form. “And killing more innocents does nothing. The boy has a family. They’ve lost enough.”

“I seek to improve society, and unfortunately, both their ‘boys’ are rotted, spoiled fruit. They will weep for a moment, but society will thank me for what I have done.” Stain remarked, shaking his head in disgust. “Besides, every criminal you tore the head off of and ate had family too.”

Izuku shuddered in disgust and horror at the mere idea, but Venom stayed firm, not moving. “Even so, I won’t let you murder anymore. Our goals clash.”

“So they do.” Stain hissed, lip curling in disgust as he shook his head. So much potential, lost on idealism. Something else had to be done it seemed, even with Jet Black. “But the world won’t change, until I open their eyes with blood!”

“Careful!” Iida warned. “If he cuts you, he can lock down your body!”

Venom growled and charged forward, be lining at Stain like a linebacker, claws braced forward. Such overwhelming power and speed, it would’ve put anyone on the back foot, but Stain was not a fool. He had fought too many and spilled too much blood to be this naive or stupid. Venom lashed at him, swiping with clawed strike after claw, hoping to hit at least once. Any blow, even a glancing one, would’ve knock him away, and probably knocked him out. Stain, however, nimbly avoided every strike, the most Venom could get was three slashes across his bony visage, blood ripping up Stain none the less unharmed, his sword flicking out like in lightning fast strikes, cutting into Venom’s body again and again, the black armor-like hide breaking and sliced open from the blade, but Izuku’s precious blood unspilled. Stain jumped back a few meters, checking his blade, to find nothing, just a clear fluid, like alcohol, coating his weapon. He flicked out, cleaning the Katana, as Venom inspected his wounds, before they sealed themselves, Venom throwing his arms back in a flexing combat stance, his tongue and teeth bared in a growl.

‘I can’t get any blood, but he’s too slow to hit me. If I just tire him out, I complete the mission.’ Stain thought quickly, giving his blade a twirl, as he prepared to continue. He preferred to cripple, but this would do.

“Venom, a full frontal assault isn’t working!” Izuku said, distressed. “We need to put some of Nakajima-San’s teachings into action!”

“On it!” Venom muttered, charging forward again.

Stain swept the area in front of him of, the blade cleaving through the air, but, rather then simply trying and tank his blows and shrug them off, Venom darted to the left, avoiding the strike and hitting a wall, knocking several bricks and mortar pieces loose from the impact, before jumping off and into the wall across from it, leaving large craters where he landed and jumped from.

Stain looked up to see Venom above him, just in time for the Symbiote to slam a punch into his skull, the air pushed out in all direction, as Stain swiped outwards, slicing through Venom’s chest and into Izuku’s form, before tucking and rolling away. Venom landed on his feet, the wound already healing, as Stain staggered from the hit. His vision swam for a moment, before he regained his footing. Even with a glancing blow, this kid’s Quirk could hit like a ton of bricks. He held up his blade and licked off the blood. Whatever residue was left from Venom also clung to the blood, but he didn’t care, licked it all up.

Izuku’s body locked up, as he struggled to stay on his feet, Venom feeling his host’s body freezing up, paralysis setting in. 

“Is this like with Shinso?” Venom hissed in terror, trying to get control of his host’s body, to no avail.

“I think this is worse.” Izuku managed through locked teeth, trying to stay on his feet despite his whole body going numb. This was far deeper then what Shinso had done, far more damaging. But he knew one thing. It was not the cut itself that had done this. It was when Stain had eaten the blood.

“Very good, you changed strategies to counter my movements, anticipated what I would do and moved to counter it.” Stain remarked, stepping past Venom as the Symbiote growled and snapped it’s jaws futility at him. “so many fakes out there are nothing but talk, but you’re worth keeping alive.”

He stepped towards Iida, tossing his blade from one hand to another, before preparing it to come down. “But these others, they have to go.”

“Don’t!” Venom barked in rage, trying to move, trying to stop the Hero Killer, as he lifted his blade to skewer Iida through the spine.

Suddenly, flames exploded outwards, Stain barely dodging them, as Venom hissed in terror at the sight, but was relieved none the less to see the Hero Killer retreat deeper into the alley, and buying time for the rest of them. Shoto stepped forward, holding his cellphone close to his chest.

“More interruptions today.” Stain grumbled in anger. He didn’t want to deal with more then one target in his crusade.

“Midoriya, learn to give better directions, I was almost too late.” Shoto remarked, as he brought down most of the flames from his body, slamming his foot down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was super excited to do this chapter, because the Hero Killer is one of my fav arcs.Setting up the pieces, and how things are slightly different was too much fun. 
> 
> One thing I enjoyed was writing Endeavor. I find him reprehensible, sure, but one thing that annoyed me was other fanfic writers making him a hot headed jackass who made basic errors and mistakes just to kick him and 'get even for Shoto'. I hate the guy too, but he's not a moron. You don't get to Number 2 by being so stupid. The scene between him and Godzillo is supposed to play into that, Endeavor seeing him as just a Movie Star type, but willing to shrug off their differences for the mission.


	20. End of Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The battle with the Hero Killer draws to a close, as other factors come into play.

Stain licked the edges of his lipless mouth, glaring with annoyance at another mere child coming to interrupt his fight and mission. “It’s just one after another today hahhhhh.”

He would have to hurry with the attacks and cripple all of them before his powers wore off. ‘It could start breaking down at any time now.’

Tenya looked up with a sigh. “Todoroki, you too?”

“Todoroki, what are you doing here, and you’re using your left?” Midoriya asked, Venom pulling back from his face.

“I should be asking you the same thing,” Shoto muttered, a concentrated gout of flames focused and held in his hand. “How did you two end up here.”

He turned the flame off, extending both hands out beside him, eyes focused on Stain the entire time, the two eyeing each other like wolves that had wondered into the other’s territory, neither willing to make the move quite yet. Stain, because he wanted a full grasp of Shoto’s power, and Shoto, to make sure he got all the info he could before starting a fight.

“All you did was send your message to everyone.” Shoto remarked, as his body cooled from the fires he had summoned before. “You’re not the kind to send stupid messages. It was easy to see it was an SOS.”

Throwing his right hand up, mountains and waves of ice exploded and shifted outwards, jagged edges and cold blue and white crystal rapidly closing on him. Stain jumped to one side, narrowly avoiding the attacks, jump onto one of the wall craters Venom had created in his first attack, the ice catching and freezing onto parts of Native and Izuku. Venom retreated completely into Izuku’s body, as the heat built up from Shoto and built all around the alley, before fire exploded outwards. The ice rapidly melted into water and carried the two paralyzed heroes back to Shoto and Tenya’s position, Stain remaining in his hiding spot, until the flames died down, the two now behind him.

Shoto held his left arm in front of him, as he stood between the Hero Killer and his friends and the Pro, glaring him down. It was slightly intimidating, having to protect so many, and keep what, he could see from the glare in his eyes, amounted to a professional killer and serial murderer. But his father, all things considered, had prepared him for this, and with so much on the line, he didn’t plan on taking one step back.

“I’m not letting you kill anyone else, Hero Killer.” Shoto declared, the fire in his hand building.

Stain didn’t respond, studying him closely, as he began to develop a strategy to counter this newcomer now.

“Todoroki, don’t let him get your blood! If he eats any, you’ll be crippled.” Izuku warned quickly, still trying to move, as Venom went into his body, poking around his organ and nerve systems to try and “fix” his host. “It’s how he got us frozen.”

“Well, that explains the blades. Here I was thinking he was just being edgy.” Shoto remarked dryly, preparing for another barrage of attacks. “But keeping my distance should be easy.”

A knife flew out, slicing into Shoto’s check, just beneath his burn scar, as he jumped slightly in shock. Stain had thrown it and was moving far faster then he expected anyone could managed. He closed with one of his Long Knives, a serrated dagger used for hacking through jungle undergrowth, or in Stain’s case, Hero Bodies. He swung for Shoto’s body, before a pillar of ice shot up, the blade getting locked in half way through the column, before he tore it out, and moved away from it. He brought his eyes up, looking slightly surprised, as Shoto fell for the feint, seeing his katana in the air above them, spinning and heading down.

Shoto looked on in surprise for just a second, forgetting Stain in that second, but it was all the Hero Killer needed to grab him by the collar and get close enough for his putrid, slivering tongue to come inches from his face, and the still bleeding scar. Stain was nanoseconds from licking even a drop of blood up, before he felt heat build off Shoto’s side, and jumped back, seconds after fire tore through the left of Shoto’s body, creating a perfect shield to keep him back.

“That was close. Too close.” Shoto remarked, looking at Stain as he caught the Katana from the free fall, and sheathed his Long Knife back in it’s hold. ‘With every move he gets closer and closer to ending this. Is this guy’s Quirk just the blood drinking thing?’

Whether it was intense training and health, or a powerful Quirk, Shoto knew he had to keep this guy off his game as long as it took for either Izuku, Native or Tenya to get back on their feet and fighting. He sent another barrage of ice at Stain, not wasting a second, or letting him catch his breath, as Stain carved through each block and column of ice with wide, sweeping slashes of his blade. Personally, Stain didn’t want to damage his blade too much, and cleaving through such hard objects would dull it, but it was a cheap one anyway.

‘I’ll have to buy a new one.’ He thought with a slight hint of anger, jumping out of the way of one attack, and carving another. ‘Never thought kids would be the ones to damage my equipment.’

“Why...why are you two doing this…?” Tenya asked, sounding disheartened, absolutely distressed to see his two friends doing so much for him. “I inherited my brother’s title. I have to deal with this man, as Ingenium.”

“Inherited, that’s funny,” Shoto remarked, creating a wave of far larger ice walls and columns to knock Stain back. “From what I’ve seen, the Ingenium back then didn’t make faces like that. Guess mines not the only family with some dark secrets, huh?”

Izuku struggled to stand or move, before he felt his fingers twitch. He looked down in surprise, hand cracking slightly as he finally got it to move again. He struggled to his feet, as Venom overtook his body again. As he did, the columns of ice in front of Todoroki shattered and were sliced to pieces in the blink of an eye.

“Attacking a faster opponent while obscuring your own vision.” Stain remarked, as three things flew out of the darkness, faster then Shoto’s eyes could follow. “Not a smart move in a fight.”

“We’ll see...” Shoto began, before the objected, three small switch blades, stabbed in his left arm, his arm briefly shaking in pain, as he looked up to see Stain above them.

In the moment between cutting the ice blocks and throwing the blades, Stain had gotten airborne, his Katana angled downwards, and ready to strike, a twisted, murderous grin across his gaunt features. Before he could bring the blade down, Venom jumped into action, smashing from one side of the building to another, before tackling him. Stain grunted in surprise, as Venom grabbed him by the collar and shoulder and threw him aside, right into a number of trash cans. Venom landed beside Shoto, claws still raised and ready for another round.

“So you can move again?” Shoto asked, holding his blooded arm in pain, but focusing ahead on the Hero Killer. “Did Venom find a work around?”

“It effected us both.” The Symbiote replied.

“There must be a time limit then.” Shoto said, tightening then loosening his grip slightly on his arm.

“No, I was hit first and I’m still locked down.” Native managed, as Tenya still struggled to stand, body shaking slightly, but unable to move despite his efforts.

Stain tried to charge back in, but was pushed back into a wall by another barrage of ice from Shoto’s foot, as Venom’s mouth tore open, Izuku once again able to speak with his own voice.

“So he uses blood to take movement away, but as for one I’m the only one able to move again.” Izuku said after taking several deep breaths. “I can think of three reasons. One, the more people there are, the less potent the effect, two is the quantity of blood, or three is the Blood Types ingested.”

Stain glared at them, as another malicious grin spread across his mouth, his teeth bared, all too similar to Venom himself. “Blood type...Hah...is the correct one!”

“Type, I’m B then.” Native stated.

“And I’m A.” Tenya replied.

“Knowing his power doesn’t give us much.” Izuku said uncertaintly. It felt as though the fight was just going to get harder as things went along.

“I want to take the two get out of here, but I’m not sure he’ll give us that chance.” Shoto remarked, shaking his arm slightly to flick the blood off. “Until the Pros get here, we’ll have to just hold out and wait for help.”

“You’ve already lost blood, I’ll keep him occupied, he can’t cut Venom’s armor, you give me support.” Izuku remarked, preparing his and Venom’s legs for the next attack. “Don’t be afraid to use your Fire Quirk.”

“If you’re sure.” Shoto replied with a curt nod. “This’ll be touch and go, but the two of us will protect them.”

“Two on one huh?” Stain replied, his bloodshot eyes focused completely on them. “At least you’re not naive about this.”

Venom’s maw seemed to ‘eat’ and overtake Izuku’s head, as his reptilian visage took over, chomping the air for a moment, before preparing for another charge into battle. He took off, beelining at Stain, as the Hero Killer gave his katana a spin within his hand, and charged as well. Shoto glanced down at Iida for a moment, before leveling his hand for another attack.

‘I can’t blame you for how you feel. When your brother got cut down, I saw the same expression in yours as mine,’ Shoto thought, firing a torrent of flames at the Hero Killer, sending right into a hook from Venom that clobbered him in the face. ‘I know what’s like to be so focused on the past, you get blinded to everything else.’

Shoto had to admit, it all started with Izuku, his persistence, his willingness to suffer any injury just to reach him, and it had worked. He thought back to how happy his mother had been when he visited her, how he was able to let go and move on from the past even after everything his father had done.

‘I’ll never forgive him, but at least I can learn from him, develop my powers further, be the hero I want to be.’ Shoto thought, as he unleashed another blast of fire towards Stain again. ‘And all it took was one sentence to truly set me free.’

As they had fought and struggled against the overwhelming speed and ferocity of Stain’s every move and attack, Tenya had been left there, forced to watch and wait for the conclusion of the fight, all over his fully and head-strong attitude. It had taken some time, but it had gotten Tenya out of his single-minded rage for once, as he felt tears begin to form in his eyes. Stain sunk his blade in deep, past Venom’s layers of slime-like armor, and into Izuku’s stomach. He tore it out, blood spraying across the alleyways, as Venom roared in pain. Even a fatal injury like that, he could heal in seconds, but once more, Stain brought the blade to his mouth, his long tongue wiping it clean, and ingesting the blood and viscera from host and Symbiote.

“Please...stop...I can’t...” Tenya managed through his own despair and loathing. He had gotten his friends into, almost gotten them killed and severely injured, just like his own brother, and this time, it was all his fault alone.

“If you want this to stop, then you’ll have to stand up!” Shoto shouted in a rare expression of anger and determination, sweat coming down his face and neck from the amount of fire he was using. “I just one thing to say! Set your eyes on the hero you want to be!”

Stain was on Shoto in seconds, cleanly slicing the ice column shielding him in two, and standing above him, blade raised for the next strike. Tenya glared up at the Hero Killer. After everything he had taken, Tenya would let him do any more damage. Stain’s blade drew closer and closer to slicing through Shoto’s chest, as Tenya felt his engines come to life once more, the smell of smoke hitting the air, before he blow off like a bullet out of the barrel, slamming int the sword with his shin guard,stopping the attack from reaching Shoto, and kicked out with such force, the blade shattered, most of it flying off and into the ground, the handle and broken remains left to Stain, as he reared back in shock. He barely had time to react, before another kick flew out and slammed into his face, knocking him back.

‘Too fast!’ Thought Stain in shock, as he doubled back and got to his feet again, shaking off the pain emanating from his face.

Venom, meanwhile, retreated into Izuku’s body, again, trying to get his body and nerves back up and running, grumbling in Izuku’s head. “I feel like a damn nurse having to fix everything or something. Stay safe, Deku.”

“Iida, you’re back!” Izuku shouted with happiness, as Shoto gave a small smile at the sight of him.

“You two got injured, severely, on my account. You’ve risked yourselves for me, and for that, I’m sorry, from the bottom of my heart!” Iida declared, his voice proud and loud once more, back to it’s usual bombastic volume.

“This again.” Izuku muttered, rolling his eyes, as Venom tinkered around with his insides, eating a few pieces off his organs to keep going. By time they got back into a hospital or something, he’d fix them. What Izuku didn’t know wouldn’t kill him.

“And that is why, I will not allow you to be stuck and bleed any longer!” Iida declared, glaring at Stain. This time, the inferno of rage and hatred had vanished, replaced by an intense and intimidation glare of determination.

“You words are empty as your future, just trying to convince everyone you’ve changed.” Stain snarled, tossing aside the broken katana. “People, fakes like you don’t change. You, and others like you, are the cancer of society, eating away at it. Someone needs to make you change.”

“That’s just the sound of a fundamentalist talking.” Shoto muttered, narrowing his eyes at the Hero Killer, before Iida interjected.

“No, He is correct. This whole time, I’ve been the furthest thing from a hero. I can never call myself that, not now at least.” Tenya declared, clenching his fists at his side. “But I will not give up here! I will become a true hero, so the name Ingenium can leave on.”

“Humans and their obsession with families and legacies is such tiresome crap.” Venom remarked, as Izuku sent him a rather foul-mouthed mental message to get him to shut up. Venom merely laughed at the sound of his host’s temper, and fell silent.

“Oh ho? Then we can’t have that.” Stain muttered, his words dripping with almost uncontrollable rage. This fake was trying to put his guard down. No one changed like that, no that fast, not now.

Shoto sent another blast of fire in Stain’s direction, who was able to dodge and weave past it. Shoto narrowed his eyes in anger and frustration, with himself more then anything. He was already hitting his limits, and his power was slowing down, both from the lack of training, and his own stress to finish this. 

“Wait, you two, just wait!” Native called, still prone from Stain’s power. “Stain wants me and the Silver armor guy. Leave us and run!”

“He’s not giving us many options!” Shoto replied back, sending a wave of ice at the Hero Killer. “And he’s not acting the same. He’s feeling the heat too!”

Everyone there noted that, before, Stain had been quick, decisive, eager to finish the fight and be done. But now, he was throwing himself into the fray without concern, trying again and again like a rapid dog to get to Iida and Native and finish this, almost forgetting Shoto and Izuku, and focused completely on Tenya now. It was a crazed tenacity that seemed to drive him now.

Tenya tried to get his engines to work, but all that came from them was puffs of smoke, sputtering bursts, but nothing to carry him to battle again. He widened his eyes in anger, but nodded slightly. He had burned himself out in one move to safe Todoroki.

“My Recipro’s fried, and my radiator must’ve burst.” Tenya muttered in agitation, before turning to Shoto. “Todoroki! Can you regulate temperatures?”

“I’m not as trained with my left side, why?” He replied, looking at him and taking his eyes off Stain.

“I need my legs cools, but don’t block my exhaust pipes!” Tenya yelled, as Stain threw another knife aimed at Shoto’s shoulder.

Shoto looked back in shock, as Tneya threw his arm out and ran to the front of his friend, the blade impaling him just above the elbow, but keeping Shoto safe. Tenya grunted in pain from the blows, blood dripping from his wound, as Shoto looked at him in shock. He sure was taking this ‘No more blood spilled’ thing rather serious.

Stain focused on him in rage, before throwing another knife at Shoto. “Quit getting in my way!”

The knife flew at Shoto’s foot, but would not reach it’s target, Tenya throwing his hand in the way, as the knife sunk into the middle his hand. Shoto shuddered in shock, even his usually cold demeanor falling to the wayside at the sight of what Tenya was doing to himself.

“Iida…!”

“Forget that, just do what is needed!” He yelled to Shoto, cringing in agony from the blow. No matter what, he had to finish without breaking the oath he had made earlier.

Izuku struggled to his feet, Venom overtaking his parts of his body once more, his eyes turning completely black as he let the Symbiote take over, to finish the fight. He focused on the ice before him, nodding to himself.

‘I’ll use that as a platform, and get to Stain, and finish this.’ He thought, glaring at the Hero Killer from Behind, the Villain still unaware of that Izuku was back up again.

Shoto, meanwhile, touched his fingers to Iida’s legs, ice spreading out, and instantly cooling the overheated engines, as Tenya locked his teeth onto the knife in his palm, and tore it out, adrenaline and his own rage and determination dulling the pain, as he yanked the other knife out of his arm.

‘Who needs arms, when my legs.’ He thought, as he brought his recripro burst back into play, running and jumping up to meet Stain head on.

Venom tore through the ground, smashing into the ice column, which he used to jump through the air, and at the Vigilante-turned-Villain, raising his claw, and closing it tightly. ‘I need nothing else, my fist….’

The Hero Killer raised his Long Knife, ready to strike, not noticing that Venom had jumped from the platform of ice, to meet him in the air as well. He glanced back, looking on in shock and amazement as both collided with him, Tenya’s leg smashing into the side of Stain’s chest with earth shattering force, as Venom’s fist collided once more with the side of the Hero Killer’s face, three teeth flying out from the sheer force of the hit.

‘Is all I need!’ Both declared in mental triumph, socking Stain with such stunning force, and knocking him out.

Stain fell from the air, dropping his long knife, as Shoto raised a column of Ice to catch him, after sending a torrent of fire to burn him, the two landing on either side of the ice, and the Hero Killer landing, letting out some last gasps of air, before falling unconscious. 

Their battle, was over.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
A few minutes earlier, and Godzillo and Endeavor, two of the most dangerous heroes from around the world, with power and skill to outmatch even the most dangerous villains, except for a handful, were still not able to leave and help out the other heroes battling their own Nomu. As they turned to head towards the battles closer to the heart of the city, the Nomu Endeavor had burned rose up, gurgling and sputtering, but still very much alive.

“My fire is more show then anything, but most people get knocked out form a hit like that.” Endeavor remarked, mentally stating that, a guy with light blue skin, smelling of rotted meat and with an exposed brain, was not ‘most people’. “Do you think your power could do anything?”

“That much Radiation, for one guy? Too dangerous.” Godzillo said, shaking his head, as the Nomu rose from all fours, smoke rising form it’s body, as a strange, lambent orange glow began to overtake it. “Careful Endeavor, something smells off.”

“Other then this Villain you mean?” Endeavor asked, before the flames built up and fired out from the creature in all directions.

The two heroes barley reacted, Endeavor swipping his hand through the air and dispelling the flames without a reaction, as the few fires the remained hit Godzillo and burned his coat and scales, barely getting a reaction from him. Most humans would’ve screamed in pain, but to the Kaiju Hero, they felt like a warm touch at best against his hide.

“Pathetic. He has to take damage from attacks to absorb and redirect them? What a useless Quirk.” Endeavor remarked with a smug chuckle. 

“Careful, he’s...” Godzillo remarked, before the creature instantly bulked up, it’s muscles getting far larger and more defined, as both Heroes’ eyes widened in shock. “Got two Quirks?”

“Three, he recovered from your claws by the look of those scars.” Endeavor pointed out, not moving from his position, even as the creature jumped at him.

It landed, throwing up dust and debris, before opening it’s mouth, and with a gurgle, it’s tongue extended out, quickly forming into a web to encompass and surround Endeavor, as Godzillo side-stepped the attack. With a disgusted grunt, he spun on his heel and swung out, his fist slamming into the Nomu’s chest, as Endeavor raised an eyebrow, impressed, before the organs and rib cage completely collapsed from the below, Godzillo’s fist perforating the Nomu’s body completely, and coming out the other side, drenched in thick, gooey black ichor.

“OOOORRRAAAA!” Godzillo yelled at the top of his long, his battle cry ending in primal, inhuman roar, before tearing his arm out, the creature falling the ground, seemingly dead.

Endeavor and he both shuddered at the stench, the flame hero fanning his hand in front of his face. “Jeez, I thought this one smelled bad, on the outside.”

Godzillo grunted, as Endeavor, shot him a sideways glance. “Aren’t heroes not supposed to kill?”

“You of all people should not criticizing me for violating the code.” Godzillo remarked, flicking Nomu blood off his clawed hand in disgust. “The rumors about your family for example...”

“Fair enough.” Endeavor remarked, as the wound on Nomu’s body began to heal, bones and ribs snapping and cracking back into place, muscle and tissue reknitting itself in minutes. He turned to his sidekicks. “Burnin! Get this creature restrained, while it’s weakened!”

“Yes sir!” She yelled, as the other sidekicks got to work, Endeavor motioning for Godzillo to follow, as more explosions sounded off deeper in the city.

“So many here at once, something seems off.” Endeavor remarked, before motioning for the others to join him, heading towards the center of the city. “Shoto, you’re with me, you’ll get to see me at work.”

When Shoto didn’t answer, Endeavor snapped at him in agitation. “How many times have I told you to put down the damn phone, and watch me!?”

Shoto turned and bolted for the other direction, as Godzillo raised an eyebrow at the other hero’s terrible luck with his kids. Endeavor was left taken aback for a moment, before yelling again, the flames around his body growing hotter with every word.

“Where do you think you’re running off to now, Shoto?!” Endeavor shouted after his sprinting son.

“An Alley at 4-2-10 Ekou Street. Once you guys are done, send some help that way,” Shoto replied back, as he got further away. “I think one of my friends is in trouble. Send any help you can.”

Endeavor watched him for a moment, as Godzillo approached, arms cross in front of himself. “What’s the plan number two? You know this situation better then me.”

“All of you, once you get that thing restrained, prepare to head to 4-2-10 Ekou Street.” Endeavor commanded.

“What about the rest of the fight in the center of the city?” Burnin demanded, sounding a little too angry for a sidekick just getting orders. Endeavor seemed to be nonplussed by her reactions.

“Me and the Movie Star are more then enough to handle them.” Endeavor replied, looking to the Kaiju Hero.

“Not to undercut you, Endeavor, but I think I should head to Ekou street as well,” Godzillo remarked, gesturing towards the location with a clawed finger. “This could be dangerous, and your sidekicks will need heavy firepower to bring it down.”

“Good thinking, I could handle the rest on my own, us two would be over kill,” Endeavor remarked, cracking his knuckles, as he turned and headed towards the battle. “Do as you wish then. Good luck.”

“Same to you.” Godzillo replied, transforming back into human form and bolting in the direction of the alleyways.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Shoto, Iida and Izuku watched the Hero Killer fall onto the Ice platform, all of them tired and worn out, but all three sporting worn but true smiles, a hard victory was still a victory. Iida was silent for a moment, his smile quickly vanishing, as he looked on in shock. He should’ve been happy. The man who had crippled his brother was defeated and under arrest now, his friends were all alive. True, he was still bleeding out his arm, and he fairly sure his hand would have permanent damage from that knife, but he had won.

“We need to find something to restrain him.” Shoto suggested, before muttering a little quietly. “And if I freeze him, he could shatter if he resists.”

“Can you use fire to restrain him?” Venom asked, coming from Izuku’s shoulder. 

“Wha...how?” Shoto asked, completely blindsided by what was probably the dumbest question.

“I saw another Hero do it, he called it Red Bind.” Venom remarked.

“The Red Magician’s fire is very different Venom.” Izuku lectured. “After all, his control of fire was more focused on the molecular level and...”

“I’ll lobotomize you if you keep going.” Venom groaned, retreating back into his body, shaking his head. “Damn it, a simple, ‘his power is different’ ain’t enough?”

“Anyway, we shouldn’t need to look for anything too special,” Izuku said, lifting up a hand now transformed into a claw. “Venom and me should be able to restrain him.”

The two nodded, as they helped Native to his feet, the effects wearing off either from the time running out on Stain’s power, or the Hero Killer getting knocked out, as Izuku stood over the unconscious body of Stain, checking his pockets and sheaths, pulling out the first Long Knife, and freezing in place. He held his forehead, a rush of dark, twisted thoughts coming in again.

“No...No not this.” He groaned, before glaring down at Stain’s body, his grip tightening on the knife handle, as he felt a dark desire come up in his mind. This man had ruined how many lives, killed how many innocent people? Why should they just tie him up? 

Venom suddenly overtook his arms, forcing him to put the knife down, as he froze in place. The Symbiote’s voice hissed within his mind, less demanding and violent then before, now strangely calm and reassuring. “Remember what happened to Iida. I know the feeling is overwhelming, but you cannot let your growing aggression and revenge rule you, ruin your future as a hero, Deku.”

Izuku nodded, as Venom concluded. “We’re heroes, and We cannot allow murder, Midoriya. We are permanently bonded to you Deku. But we are not Riot, we are not Carnage. We will not kill. You or me, understand?”  
Izuku nodded as he came to his senses, as he pulled out the other knives and blades Stain, as Venom created multiple masses of strings from his body, and wrapped them tightly around Stain’s arms and body. “Don’t you like to kill Venom? You’ve eaten people. Why stop now?”

“We don’t want to stop, but we realized being with you, we have to cut certain things out,” Venom explained. “That’s what couples do, correct?”

“We’re not like that, not a couple.” Izuku muttered, as he brought down with him, slowly lowering himself from the platform, and trying to hide his blush behind his lower-mouth mask.

“Sure, it’s cute when you try to lie.” Venom remarked with a dark chuckle. “Besides, I’m here for the ride. Ochako’s the one you’re going to...nevermind.”

After making sure Venom’s bonds were tight and secured on Stain, they turned and left for the alley.

“I think we got really lucky with that fight. Even with three on one, we won only because he made several mistakes.” Shoto remarked, the scar under his burn mark now clotted. “He forgot all about Midoriya, and didn’t expect Tenya’s final attack.”

Tenya nodded saddly, his mind seemingly elsewhere, Izuku was about to say something to him, or add to the conversation, when a deep, very commanding and very angry voice yelled from across the streets at them. Izuku looked up in surprise to see Godzillo heading towards, and coming at them, as quickly as he could.

“I told you to find a hero group, and not rush off into a fight!” Godzillo growled, his usual stoic visage following into one of pure anger, his eyes turning orange-red as he glared down at the cowering Izuku. “You could’ve gotten hurt going after the Hero Killer, you should know better!”

Izuku shook with terror at the sight of his teacher being so angry, as even Venom shuddered with terror at the sight, feeling like he was ready to ditch Izuku and hide in a dark corner of the alleyway. The Kaiju Hero took a deep breath and nodded slightly.

“All things considered, you three must’ve done a good job. You beat a high level Villain and came out most in one piece.” He replied, still trying to keep his anger under control. “Just, follow my orders next time, ok Midoriya?”

“I’m...sorry Nakajima-Sensei.” Izuku replied, bowing his head slightly.

“I told you not to call me that.” Godzillo remarked, stepping past to inspect Stain. “You really put the wallop on him, huh?”

“Is this the alley where backup was needed?” A Hero called, as a variety of Heroes and Sidekicks started to file in. “We were told to come here by Endeavor, but it looks like everything’s taken care of.”

“So he...Endeavor’s still fighting?” Shoto asked.

“Oh yeah, some Nomu-like creatures, what’s going on with that?” Izuku asked.

“I took out one, punch right through it, but it still healed,” Godzillo replied, showing the dried, black gonk on his hand. “The other two, he took care of, I think.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Several Minutes Earlier  
The center of the city was a burning wreck, overturned cars, shattered windows and pulverized walls, the Black Nomu giving another low, moaning roar of challenge for the Heroes struggling to bring him down. High-pressure torrents of water, and, right now, several Ninja stars thrown rapid fire at it’s back. The two heroes were dressed in light armor and several weapons, trying to stop the Nomu. Their stars were sharpened to a fine point, and with the speed they could and were throwing, have restrained and cut into any normal human, no matter how protected.

The Nomu’s thick hide and muscle, however, were too thick and powerful, the Ninja stars hitting him, and bouncing off, as the creature roared it’s challenge at the gathered heroes. One of the heroes, his mask resembling a bull, slammed his foot down, and yelled to his comrades.

“He can’t take us all down!” He shouted, his Japanese said with a slight Spanish accent. “Everyone attack him at once!”

Dozens of heroes charged in every, heading right for the Nomu. It’s simple brain could barely process anything outside of what enemies, commanders, other Nomu, what orders it was given, and such. But even it’s simple brain knew the best way to deal with such large numbers of enemies. It raised both fists over it’s head, and with a powerful roar, slammed them down, a shockwave of force following, as the waves knocked everything around it back, and threw dust into the air, the few heroes still on their feet utterly blinded by the attack.

“Where is he?” One of them shouted, as Manuel looked around, trying to spot anything out of the ordinary.

He looked to one of the female heroes, spotting something in the smoke, all too late. “Wait, look out!”

She turned around, as Nomu rose it’s fist to utterly pulverize her, before a blur of blue clothing and fire blitzed the creature, slamming a fiery, white-hot fist into it’s arm and side, and knocking it away with a yell. The creature staggered back, it’s dull, barely functioning brain surprised by a foe that, for once, had the strength to knock it back. It looked down at it’s burned arm, the flesh a scorched red, before the skin reknitted itself and recovered, soon the pristine, shiny black it was before.

“Another with Super Regeneration huh? Far stronger then the one Godzillo donuted at least.” He remarked, before nodding to himself. “Time for a new strategy.”

The Nomu and Hero charged into each other, slamming into one another with enough to send gusts of air out in a shock wave around them. Endeavor, even with his immense strength, could feel this creature already was superior to him in physical power. But he didn’t intend to out-wrestle or overpower it. He wrapped both hands around it’s brain-like head, fire building around it, as the creature struggled to get him off, before he intensified the flames further then he usual did.

The red-orange flames consumed the head, before turning bright blue, and shooting out from his hands and into the air behind the Nomu, the creature screaming and thrashing in agony, before it stopped only a few seconds later. Endeavor dropped it’s body to the ground, it’s entire head burned to a crisp, smoking black.

“You can’t regenerate carbonized cells.” He remarked, as he stepped over the being’s body.

“Endeavor, what are our orders?” One of the Heroes asked.

He turned to them, stroking his fiery beard. “Go to 4-2-10 Ekou Street, there should be an alley there.”

“Are there villains there too?” Another asked.

“I don’t know, but give any backup you can.” He replied. He wasn’t sure to trust the information himself, but his son was training to be a hero, and part of him felt something was afoot there. It was better to be safe then sorry. 

“Incoming!” Another Hero shouted, as the Third Nomu flew overhead, carrying an unconscious Hero in it’s foot claws.

“We need flight heroes!” One of them shouted.

“Get to the alley, I’ll pursue this one myself!” Endeavor ordered, before running after the creature.

He chased the thing through the streets, and into the less occupied side streets, where nothing stood in his way. He focused his fire into a ball, and threw it with all his might, aiming at the creature’s shoulders. The ball sailed into the air behind it, flying forward, and deadset on hitting the creature, before it suddenly made a right turn, and completely dodged the attack. Endeavor’s eyes widened slightly, but he would not let fancy air tricks keep him from accomplishing his mission. He had to stop it before it got too high, and dropping it would be dangerous for the Hero it had taken.

Jumping onto the side of the building, he heated the fire across his feet, melting the bricks and sides of the building, creating step after step for him to travel upon, jumping from the apartment, and onto the roof of the business shop. The Nomu turned slightly, as he focused and created another fire attack, slowing slightly in the process, before he formed the fire into a spear, and threw it, the spear of flame slashing into the creature’s head, and vaporizing it’s eye, and causing it to drop the hero in it’s clutches.

Endeavor rapidly melted parts of the roof he was in, sliding along the melted, metal goo, and arriving just in time to catch the hero, as the Nomu flew off, over the building horizon. He watched it leave for a moment, carefully holding the injured hero.

“It won’t get far.” Endeavor remarked to himself. “I’ll finish this, and check in on Shoto at once.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
While this happened, the Heroes were making sure to keep Stain under watch, and trying to get in contact with the already overtaxed and overstretched police department in Hosu City. This left Tenya, Shoto and Izuku on their own, mostly. With a deeply saddened expression, Tenya dropped his head into a bow before the two.

“You both, got injured on my account. I’m so terribly sorry.” Tenya stated, trying and failing to fight back tears. “I was so blinded by rage, I lost sight of everything my family and I stand for.”

Izuku shook his head. “No, I’m the one who should be sorry. Venom and I could tell something was wrong, but we never bothered to try and talk it out. I let it get this far.”

“Well, get it together, you’re our class president. Set the example.” Shoto remarked bluntly, as Tenya gave him a sad smile, wiping the tears from his eyes.

“Right, right.”

“Awww, isn’t that nice?” Venom remarked with a sarcastic hiss. “I’d cry had I had tearducts.”

Godzillo turned, spotting something coming at them from the skies, before shouting. “Hit the dirt everyone!”

Izuku barley had time to react before something blitzed him from above, and grabbed him by shoulders, and flew off. It was the flying Nomu, it’s left eye missing and most of it’s face and neck horribly burned from some fire attack from earlier, it’s rotted stench now mixed with the lovely smell of human flesh that had been fried. Blood from the Nomu’s wound fell upon one of the female heroes, and the ground, as Stain slowly awoke, giving no indication he was awake yet.

Izuku rapidly turned into Venom, the Symbiote struggling against the creature’s vice-like grip. It roared and worbled in anger and surprise, trying to keep the Symbiote in it’s claws, as the Symbiote roared and struggled.

“Godzillo sir, can’t you hit it with a beam?” Shoto asked, the Kaiju Hero looking on in shock, as he tried to get under it.

“No can do, the radiation could, even if I hit the furthest wing, at best, give him acute radiation sickness,” He replied, grinding his teeth. “At worst, I could flash-fry both of them.”

With a wet, squishy snap, Venom’s bindings broke off, turning to gray flakes, as Stain ran behind the Female hero and licked the Nomu’s blood right off her face. She froze in shock and horror at the move, as the Hero Killer ran past them. The Nomu, so focused on restraining the Hero, completely forgot about anything else (Not hard for such a creature), and was taken aback completely when it’s entire body shut down, and ceased moving.

“De...ku.” It managed, as Symbiote and host looked on in shock as it soon began to fall like a stone.

“Both this shame-filled society, and it’s Fake Heroes obsessed with wealth and power,” Stain declared, as he jumped on the Nomu’s back, raising his small knife over his head. “And the villains that yield their power without restraint, are targets of my purge!”

Izuku looked on in shock, as even Venom seemed taken aback by the move, the Hero Killer slashing the Nomu right across the throat, as it fell to the ground in a heap. Still shocked by both the Hero Killer’s words and actions, and what it sounded like the Nomu had said, Venom stepped away, studying the Hero killer, as he stood up from the seemingly dead Nomu.

“All for the sake, of a correct society!” He declared, drool and spittle coming from his mouth, his eyes clouded over and bloodshot, looking more ragged then ever before, but resolute all the same.

From atop the building of Hosu, Shigaraki watched in shock. He lower the binoculars from his eyes, hand shaking as he looked on. He had no clue what even was happening here, what was at play, why the Hero Killer was doing what he was doing.

“Why is that brat with the Symbiote here? Why is he killing my Nomu? What are kids doing here?” Shigaraki yelled, scratching at his neck in rage, as his voice grew shriller and less controlled by the second. “So many damn questions and no answers, why why why? Why is nothing going my way?!”

Kurogiri merely watched in silence, hands folded behind, as he waited for Shigaraki to say something else, such as to ask advise or ask for them to go home. If Shigaraki lost it here, it would make much more hard to escape notice or get them away from trouble.

Back on the street level, Izuku had had Venom disappear into his body, backing away, but Hero Killer didn’t seem to care for him.

“Did he save the kid?” One of the heroes asked, utterly confused.

“No, you idiot, he’s taking hostages!” Another barked back. “Battle positions!”

Stain, however stepped away from Izuku, his mask about to fall off. Endeavor suddenly appeared from one of the alleyways.

“What are you all standing there for!” Endeavor yelled to them. “One of them should’ve flown overhere!”

“Endeavor, wait, the situation’s evolved!” Godzillo yelled back, indicating the Hero Killer, standing over Izuku.

Stain tore off his mask, his gaunt, skeletal face now exposed to the air, burned in several areas around his mouth and eyes, three scars across his face, and a missing nose, his bloodshot eyes focused on Endeavor and Godzillo.

“Endeavor and a damned movie actor! Everything I despise!” He yelled, his hoarse voice rising with his fury and unconstrained rage. He stomped over the Nomu’s body, gripping his small knife in a white-knuckle grip. “If I don’t fix it, someone else will have to stain themselves with blood, to fix this sham of a society, to reclaim what it means to be a Hero!”

His eyes bulged, as everyone locked down, no one daring to move as he took two more shuddering, staggering steps towards, his eyes unfocused and bloodshot more then ever, looking ready to shoot out of his own head.

“So come and try and kill me! The only one worthy of killing me, is All Might!” Stain yelled at the top of his lungs. “Come on you fakes!”

Even Godzillo was afraid. The kaiju hero was afraid of only two things, but on that day, with everyone else, Stain had shot to the top of the list. His malice-filled glare, and his utter willingness to die to face them all down, had trigged a primal fear in all of them. Where should’ve been a whole squadron of Heroes, one the number 2, three of them in training at the best academy, was instead people reduced to children, cowering in unspeakable terror at the being before them, someone who had ascended into something worse then human to them. Venom didn’t even dare activate, even the Symbiote frozen within Izuku’s body in horror at the sight of the Hero Killer.

Stain stood there for a moment, now unmoving, still standing but now still as a statue. Endeavor was the first to regain his breath, taking a heavy breath in and out as he finally spoke.

“I think...I think he’s out cold.” He managed after a moment.

With his words, everyone caught their breath, Godzillo holding his chest as if he was worried his heart would stop, taking a few desperate gulps of air, as Tenya and Shoto staggered to their feet. 

It would be a few days after the Hero Killer was restrained and treated, that anyone figured out what had happened. One of his ribs had been snapped off and perforated his lung. He survived, but from now on the rest of his days would be spent in the almost mythical prison of Tartarus, one of the most highly guarded areas in the world, beside Outpost 31 in Antarctica, Godzillo’s own Ogasawara and a handful of other stations.

Despite having not gotten any of the blood from the gathered heroes, his mere presence and willingness to die for the cause, had frozen them in a way even his Quirk could never manage.

In clean up, the Police restrained the two smaller Nomu, the blue one and the winged one, their wounds found to be healing, and would be sent into holding with their larger predecessor. The third, whose head had been completely carbonized by Endeavor, would be sent there for study. As this all occurred, Shigaraki grabbed the Binoculars with both hands, as it rapidly decayed and crumbled away. He tossed away the dusty remains of the thing, and took a deep, rage-filled breath.

“Let’s head home.” He said quietly.

“Did you achieve the results you hoped for, Shigaraki?” Kurogiri asked obediently, as his body transformed into a portal once more.

“Idiot, that depends on what the news has tomorrow.” Shigaraki hissed.

They left behind the burning city, Shigaraki already certain that, even with Stain doing whatever it was he was doing, that he would be forgotten, that no one would remember his quest, not with Shigaraki having done so much damage.

In his mind, he had already won. He just need the media and the rest to say it for him to hear, and everyone else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm surprised at how fast I whipped this one out, but, with lockdown, there isn't much to do. 
> 
> So, one thing that might stick out is that every Nomu can regenerate. It's not that in this fic they get the Super Regeneration Quirk, but if you remember in Chapter 17, Naomasa stated Nomu had alien DNA in him. That's where I pull my little trap card, five-D chess move and reveal that they're loaded with small samples of Symbiote DNA extracted from Riot, to give the Nomu some extra bite. It's also foreshadowing that AfO, Dr. Ujiko and others are going to be doing a lot more with Symbiote DNA.
> 
> I also made the hint that Tsubasa is the Winged Nomu a little more obvious. Like, brick to the face obvious.


	21. Daybreak

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the battle with Stain, other forces begin to reveal more and more of themselves, sensing a change in the Status Quo to come.

The situation after was a little more difficult for his peers then Izuku himself. They were stuck healing their injuries, scaring, fractured limbs and other injuries that would take a few days in the hospital to take care of, while Venom had healed all of Izuku’s wounds and injuries the moment he entered the hospital. Izuku would visit them, but was given a few days break by Godzillo, even as the deadline neared, the Kaiju Hero seemingly ok with letting him just relax the days away.

Of course, it hadn’t been easy. The chief of Police of Hosu had basically told them that, in exchange for everyone’s silence, they wouldn’t get credit for defeating Stain. Endeavor and Godzillo would claim credit for the operation, to cover up the burn and claw markings and scars across his body.

“I hope your happy with your win.” Godzillo had grumbled after the chief left, along with the other heroes. “Even the idea of working with Endeavor is...disheartening.”

“Imagine living with him.” Shoto had pipped up, producing a rare smile from the Kaiju King, before he leaned into Izuku’s ear.

“After your visit is done, meet with me at the lobby. We have things to discus.” He whispered, dead serious now. “And it’s not about the Hero Killer.”

Venom shook slightly in agitation, as he left without another word. “First the useless Police Chief, then this stuff. I don’t like this day.”

“You’re one to talk. You got locked down by Stain’s Quirk, but not Shinso’s?” Izuku remarked, shaking his head in mock disgust. “I might ditch you and become a Quirkless Hero.”

Venom hissed in his alien tongue in rage, Izuku chuckling slightly. “Sorry, it’s a joke Ven. Calm down.”

“Don’t joke about that.” Venom hissed, sounding greatly offended by it.

“Izuku is everything alright with you and your Internship?” Tenya asked from his bed.

Izuku turned, giving a shrug. “I don’t know, honestly. But I’ll see you guys later, ok?”

They both waved him off, as he headed out the door, and made his way out of the hospital. Venom seemed to be in a foul mood, that much Izuku could tell from their connection. He felt sorry for the Symbiote. Perhaps he had touched a nerve. As they stood alone in the elevator, Izuku offered the olive branch to his partner.

“I’m sorry what I said, I know you tried your best. Stain was cutting you deep though.” Izuku remarked, trying not to reopen any mental wounds for Venom. “I would’ve died without you, especially after some of those stabs and cuts.”

“It’s not that, it’s that he kept freezing me too!” Venom hissed in anger. “I was immune to Shinso, other then seeing my God, which, still bothers me, don’t know why you shrugged it off.”

“Alien crap is alien crap, It all looks the same to me.” Izuku said with a shrug.

“Anyway, but why did Stain effect me?” Venom hissed, sounding despondent. “I have no blood, and yet I was effected, and that left you vulnerable.”

“We won, don’t let it bother you man.” Izuku replied, as the doors opened.

“I will. I must protect you. You’re the only host and being whose given me a chance at being what I want to be, not just a tool for Riot, and the Symbiote Supreme and the Emperor.” Venom remarked, shaking his head. “If I can’t help you, I am worthless as a warrior.”

“No, you’re not dude.” Izuku replied, holding out a hand as he tried to calm his Symbiote down. “Now, let’s talking to Nakajima-Sensei, and see what’s what.”

They found him by one of the windows, watching the floors planted outside the hospital, the great garden a wash of colors, ranging from reds, blues, pinks, oranges and purples, of various patterns and plants that Izuku couldn’t begin to recognize. Godzillo was seated at his chair, sipping a cup of coffee, and gestured to Izuku to sit without even turning to him. Izuku sat awkwardly across from him, the Kaiju Hero hardly acknowledging him, as he looked at the flowers for a moment, before slowly turning to him.

“I will cut to the chase with this.” Godzillo stated after taking another sip of coffee. “I know your Quirk isn’t a Quirk. I know what Venom is.”

“Wha...What do you mean.” Midoriya replied quickly, giving a nervous smile, as he put both hands up. “We’re just a normal Quirk, bloomed late in middle school and...”

“Save it. He’s a...Klyntar, right?” Godzillo said, as Izuku froze. That was the name Shigaraki had used, the name that, in the years training and getting used to him, that Venom had used for his kind.

“How do you know?” Izuku asked, trying to keep his panic in check, trying to keep himself under control, fearful of making a scene here.

“I don’t plan on telling your teachers. That’s for you to decide,”Godzillo remarked, intertwining his fingers in front of him, looking relaxed despite everything. “I don’t care about the Stain thing. It was dangerous and risky, but I am worried about you getting so active. There’s people starting to notice.”

“Like who?” Izuku asked in a hushed tone, completely silent.

“You’re being watched, not right now, and hopefully your home isn’t bugged, but be careful what you say if it is.” Godzillo stated quickly. “But that guy I meet with at the beginning of Internships, Kinzokumure, wasn’t an old friend. He’s the one assigned to watch you. And me.”

“I thought he smelled familiar.” Venom growled, extending out from Izuku’s shoulder. “Can I eat his head?”

“No, don’t do anything stupid.” Godzillo grumbled in annoyance, shaking his head. “But be aware, this guy has basically blackmailed me into turning my island into a research facility.”

“For…?” Izuku began, certain he already knew the answers.

“For Symbiote research. Three others of your kind are there,” Godzillo said, pointing to Venom. “A green one, a purple one and an orange one. Ring any bells?”

“They aren’t my team.” Venom grumbled, before narrowing his eyes and shaking slightly. “Which means there’s probably seven Symbiotes on this world. This is getting very dangerous. How did they get them.”

“I don’t know, I just guard the damn place.” Godzillo said, shaking his head in anger. “I only know bare basics, everything else is a secret. And they are sensitive about leaks.”

“Will this get you in trouble?” Izuku asked, terrified about everything that was unfolding before him.

“If they find out.” Godzillo remarked. “But Kinzokumure is on your trial, and they more you do, the more he wants you. And if you have others here, they will be in danger too.”

“Does Kinzokumure, does he have complete control?” Venom hissed, growing agitated at the news. Being pursued and unable to fight back had riled him up more then being denied a meal.

“He has a Boss, and all I know is, he exists.” Godzillo replied, looking around for a moment and scanning the mostly empty lobby, before turning back to his student. “One more thing. They want to clone Symbiotes. I don’t know how, and I only got lucky and heard Kinzokumure on the phone, but their end goal is to clone more obedient symbiotes.”

“This is blasphemous!” Venom growled, a little too loud, as others briefly looked at him in disgust, before turning away, Izuku giving them apologetic looks. He wished Venom wasn’t so easy to anger, but the Symbiote was seething.

Izuku looked at him in surprise. The Symbiote was well and truly angry, in a way he had never seen before. Before, it was short bursts, or playing along to scare villains. Now, Venom was ready to snap and lash out. He was almost too terrified to try and reign him in. 

“This is blasphemous!” he repeated, shaking like a serpent ready to strike. “They cannot clone, not without permission from a Supreme or the Emperor.”

“Cloning is common on your world?” Godzillo asked.

“Worlds, and yes.” Venom answered, calming himself down with a huff. “We clone a lot actually. There are two types. The lobotomized who act as foot soldiers and fodder, who can’t reproduce to spread their dishonor, and fully functional clones, that add more agents to our people.”

“So this is about patriotism?” Godzillo asked, carefully choosing his words with the Symbiote.

“No, personal honor.” Venom growled. “If every sentient used Klyntarii DNA to make super soldiers, it would make us slaves. We did not depose of our God to be made slaves to another!”

Godzillo nodded. He remembered his grandfather, in long nights on Ogasawara’s shores, before Kinzokumure and his ilk came, talking about the copies like the Mecha he had to fight, and the clones, form Plants and Crystals and other things that came form his DNA. The Toho Quirk was dangerous in the wrong hands, but this Symbiote was slightly worse.

‘Unable to reproduce. So if these clones begin producing seedlings, and spreading throughout the world, they could become more then the Agency could handle.’ Godzillo thought with a huff. ‘Three and their Clones could become 12, then 24, then who knows how long before they overtake everything. It’ll be like the Outpost 32 situation, but somehow worse.’

“Mister Nakajima?” Izuku asked, breaking his thoughts, as he Kaiju Hero shuddered for a moment.

“Oh/ Yes?” 

“is it safe to, do anything?” Izuku asked, looking jittery and terrified in his seat. “I want to be a hero, it’s the one thing I’ve always wanted, and without Venom, or worse, getting sliced up or something, I...”

“Don’t. Don’t worry about anything.” Godzillo declared, tapping his nails against the table. “I believe you and Venom are the key to something else. To Co-existence, where Symbiotes and Humans can help each other, ok?”

“You must not know much of my kind.” Venom grumbled, smile widening.

“I saw what the other three they have can do, but if we work together, I think something better can happen.” Godzillo replied, taking a deep breath. “No one’s nature defines them, correct?”

Venom wanted to say something else, really rub it in about his ignorance and lack of knowledge about the Symbiotes, but decided against it. This was a Hero who knew his secret, but was willing to help and make things better for him and Izuku. Venom would have to ignore his naivete, and accept the help, or be at this Kinzokumure’s mercy.

“When things die down, I hope to take you to Ogasawara.” Godzillo remarked. “I want to free your kind, break Kinzokumure’s hold, and help you monitor each other’s health better, ok?”

“Not now I hope.” Izuku remarked, worried out of his skull. He had barely survived a fight with Stain, much less a government agency that actually knew what Symbiotes were.

“Later, like I said, much later, when things die down.” Godzillo said with a nod. “That’s it, start the car, and I’ll be with you shortly.”

Izuku nodded, looking around again to spot anyone trying to listen in or spy on them, before awkwardly standing up, and catching the keys from Godzillo. There was so much to take in about this whole situation, but walking to the car, and waiting for him would give him time to process everything. Venom had been so worried about his team showing up, and now, there were three other Symbiotes active, that he knew of.

He jumped slightly at the sound of his phone going off, as he headed out the door towards the parking lot. The recent news Godzillo had laid on him had him on edge, but he took out his phone and relaxed as much as he could. It was Ochako’s number, after all, and he didn’t want her to worry.

“I got a way to make you both relax.” Venom practically purred into his ear, as he shuddered in terror. Izuku almost felt tempted to ask her on a date, just to shut the Symbiote up for once.

“Ughh, hi Uraraka!” He spoke, his voice a pitch higher then he expected or wanted it to be.

“I just wanted to see how you were doing,” She said cheerfully, before her tone shifted to a more apologetic one. “I’m sorry I didn’t check on you or call you. I’ve been busy with internships,”

“Yeah, there was a lot going on with me too, sorry I couldn’t get to you.” Izuku replied, before she heard him yelp slightly, and yell at someone. “Can you do that! Not now!”

“Umm, sorry?” She said, slightly confused by his sudden change in behavior.

“No, no, Venom’s misbehaving.” Izuku replied quickly. “Sorry!”

“Uraraka, we’re ready to begin!” Gunhead announced.

“I gotta go, you can tell me all about it back at school ok?” She said, before they said their final good byes and hung up.

Gunhead waited a moment, before leaning in close, both hands pressed against where his mouth would be under his helmet, a girly grin underneath as he spoke in a gossipy manner. “Was that your boyfriend?”

“No! It’s nothing like that!” She shouted in embarrassment and protest.

Izuku meanwhile, held his phone, shaking as the call ended. His face blushed like fire as he grinned to himself. “I can’t believe I talked to a girl on the phone! It was amazing! It was like she was whispering in my ear!”

“Sometimes I worry about you...” Venom hissed in disappointment. Sometimes he wished his host would have more confidence. Facing so many threats, and still completely useless around girls. “Now, let’s focus! They have three of my kind in a lab, and we need to plan, even now, to get them back!”

“I get your upset, but we’ve got enough going as it is.” Izuku replied. “This won’t end well if we rush in.”

Venom settled down an angered growl, still unsatisfied, but silently brooding over what to do. He didn’t care for most of his kind, but he couldn’t let them be torn apart, experimented on and dissected like animals. He would, in time, pay back this Kinzokumure. Even if he couldn’t do it today, Venom would make sure to develop the most deliberate and horrific ways to torture him before the end.  
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Hours after the Hero Killer had been detained, and the life saving operation put into effect to keep his lung from bleeding out, Stain was left in his hospital room, a single guard posted, the room darkened and filled only with the lights from the machine, and the constant, rhythmic beeping of his heart monitor. The door opened, as two men shuttled their way in, one dressed in a light blue sight, still wearing shades even in the night right now. Stain weakly opened one eye, glaring at them with absolute disgust.

“Government...hah….lackeys….lower then even fake...hah...heroes.” He said, his voice barely above a whisper, having barely the energy or breath to speak.

“Afraid you’ll have to speak up lamb chop.” Kinzokumure remarked. “A perforated lung tends to obscure the oratory.”

Stain narrowed his eyes at the newcomer, fighting the urge to do the only thing he had the strength left to do; spit in his face. “Do….hah...You want….to know why?”

“Irrelevant. You could kill all the heroes for all I care, I’m more interested in what you’ve eaten.” Kinzokumure replied, studying him with a cold, disinterested look.

The scientist next to him obediently pulled up his medical files, and a deep X-ray of his stomach and intestines. Something was lining the sides of his organs. Small, barely noticeable. Kinzokumure held up the scans to the light to get a better look, removing his shades and giving a Stain a brief look at his red-within black eyes.

“Congratulations, Mister Akaguro, you’re expecting.” Kinzokumure remarked with a grin, handing the file back over to the Doctor. “That boy with the black slime-suit, you were eating in his blood and parts of his suit right?

“So?”

“That wasn’t just a suit, that was an alien organism.” Kinzokumure explained. “Nasty little things. Barely sentient. Grow off their hosts, feasting on nutrients like phenylethylamine. In a few months or so, you may find out. Other then the boy, we could always use more test subjects.”

“You will not...harm...him.” Stain struggled, fixing him with a rage-filled glare, fingers twitching, grabbing in the air at blades he no longer had. “He is...the only one...worthy of All Might!”

“I saw the video of your rant, very heart wrenching and emotional, tugged at the strings.” Kinzokumure replied dryly, tapping his chest twice with a fist. “What I’m doing goes beyond your goals, however. It guarantees humanity a fighting chance.”

“Why tell me?” Stain managed with a weary glance.

“So you know why I’ll have you cut open and extra the Symbiote pieces from your guts.” Kinzokumure replied. “See, we’d love to give you one, but you’re slightly unstable, given how many you stabbed to death. Both as Stain and Stendhal. Wouldn’t want you influencing the little tyke Symbiote, would we?”

He gave a mock salute, as he stood and left, putting his hands in his pockets, Stain watching him leave, silent and confused, unsure if the figure was even real that he was looking at, or an apparition. He turned one last time in the door way, looking back at Stain with a cold smile.

“You’ll have a few weeks before your transport to Tartarus. Be ready for us to sift through your organs.” He remarked.

He shut the door and left, leaving Stain mystified and utterly baffled, wondering if a mentally ill salary man had just wandered into his room, and the guard somehow let him in. As he stood out, Kinzokumure pulled out his cell phone and punched the buttons in.

“Boss, I am happy to report that Mister Akaguro is indeed carrying Symbiote samples in his body.” Kinzokumure reported in his usual cold tone. “In a few weeks, we’ll prepare the operation to extract them.”

“Perfect, Operation:Black Death proceeds as planned. Our first clone will be more then ready.” The Boss remarked, their voice again distorted and modified to hide any trace of their origin. “How was Little Venom himself, has he gone on another rampage?”

“No sir, he’s good at hiding his tracks.” Kinzokumure replied, as he stepped into the elevator and punched his floor number. “I still don’t trust Godzillo. Even knowing the truth of these things, he won’t do anything but undercut us. He wants his island back, even when it’s the only secure area.”

“Indeed, first training the Symbiote as though it was a child, now stepping in the middle of our goals.” The Boss remarked, sighing to himself. “I do wish we could be friends, but I think he’s going to become a liability. Have him bugged.”

“Will do sir. What of the boy, are we still to observe?” Kinzokumure asked.

“Yes, do not act yet.” The Boss ordered carefully. “I don’t want to move in until I have a net carefully built, all angels ready to finally capture Jet Black.”

“What about the second one, that annihilated our team in Koribu?” Kinzokumure asked. “Should I send another, or go myself?”

“Right now, the creature is up in the air, but Venom will draw it to him.” The Boss instructed coldly. “When the two are close, strike.”

“Teams of these are usually divided in fours or threes, I think we have two others to account for, at most.” Kinzokumure pointed out.

“The other will be with Shigaraki and this League of Villains. The Nomu we all dissected had trace Symbiote DNA, not matching the samples from Venom.” The Boss agreed with a nod. “We may have to move against them. Not yet though. Focus on one target at a time.”

Kinzokumure didn’t wish to speak against his Boss, but something was bothering him. If Shigaraki and this League had a Symbiote, why was it hiding from them? Given the instability of their frontman, how where they extracting the Symbiote DNA without hurting or using it up too quickly, surely he wouldn’t have the patience for that? Perhaps the other two where with the LoV? But again, why hide two then? The Boss had made his statement, and Kinzokumure would stay to his operations, no matter how much he wished to track this Shigaraki and his band of mutants and thugs.

‘Perhaps removing this little annoyance before it metabolizes would be a good exercise.’ Kinzokumure thought with a grin. ‘Shigaraki would be just the right balance of challenge and ease of defeating.’

“If nothing else remains, return to your position, and wait for this all to die down.” The Boss ordered. “Aizawa will be watchful, especially after this Midoriya starts making a ruckus.”

Kinzokumure nodded, before heading out of the hospital, and disappearing into the city streets, as the sun began to rise above them.  
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Shigaraki sat back in the bar he had called home, his shoulder injury mostly tended to, heavy bandaging under his baggy black shirt, as he read through a newspaper, and flipped through every channel he could, stopping wherever there was news. Every single time, they were talking about Stain, what Stain wanted, what Stain fought for, why Stain did what he did. He narrowed his eyes behind his Hand mask, before scratching at his neck with one hand, reading through the papers, and getting the same from them.

“It’s the same everywhere.” he finally snapped to himself, Kurogiri carefully watching him from behind the bar. “Every time they talk about him, it’s always Stain first, and the Nomu as an after thought.”

He balled up the newspaper, shaking with rage, before locking all fingers down on it and reducing it to ashes. He stood up. “We’re the sideshow. No one’s forgotten about him at all!”

He clenched a fist, looking like he wanted to hit the table, before shaking his head. “If Sensei would just give me my Symbiote already, I could do enough damage to truly upstage Stain!”

That was what he needed, the three Nomu were too weak. He needed stronger minions, more damage, more destruction, more mayhem. Then people would forget about Stain, and know who the real top villains were.

“That is your mistake Tomura, Riot is not yours, but a being all his own. You will bind with him, when you are ready, when you both are equal, but certainly not now,” Sensei’s voice chided from the computer. “But I take it the use of the Nomu didn’t satisfy you?”

“Why haven’t they focused on me, when I caused more damage, when my Nomu put more heroes in the hospital?!” Shigaraki demanded, utterly confused by everything. His master would have to know. He had been a great villain for so long, after all.

“I cannot answer that Tomura.” The Master replied. “If you want to be a great villain, you should be able to find the answers on your own. And I think you can. Very few have impressed me like you, with your strength and power. Don’t give up just yet.”

Shigaraki nodded, as he sat back down to stew over his second ‘defeat’ and humiliation. There had to be an answer, either in Stain’s manifesto, or what was being reported, that he could use. He would have to think long and hard about this, but he would not disappoint his Sensei, that much was certain.  
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Elsewhere in Japan, two men meet to discuss business. The den they choose was beat up, dusty and had seen far better days. One was a portly, older fellow, one eye hidden behind an eyepatch, the pinkie on his right hand cut off just below the knuckle of his hand. He sipped on his glass of beer, as the other man sat back, listening to him.

“Seems we can’t commit any crime now adays. So many whine about not selling our their friends, or just being too scared.” He remarked gloomily. “It’s all a pain man.”

“Selling and dealing in support items without a license is a serious crime nowadays.” The man in the suit remarked, his shades hanging low on his nose, a noticeable gap between his teeth. “And we all know companies like Detnerat and Life Foundation are selling their extra stock on the black markets.”

The older man sighed and took another sip of his drink, shaking his head slightly. “Man, it was so much easier before All Might. I was young, I think, when he was just in school, and everything was easier then. Maybe It’s about time I retired.”

“Now hold on, let’s hold the retirement party and the cake for later,” Giran remarked, as he used the fire from his revolver to light his cigarette and take another long drag. “Your company is known for high quality stuff and a low profile, so I got something to show you.”

He pulled up a Cell, and began playing one of the many videos of Stain’s final rant, before he ended up knocked out. The old man shook his glass and ice cubes within slightly, before furrowing his eyebrows.

“And?” He demanded. “What does it matter? He’s just another downed villain.”

“It’s more then that, look at the big picture.” Giran said, a note of excitement in his normally relaxed tone. “The clips keep getting taken down, especially the last part, because everyone gets it. His style and ideas are gonna spread like the plague.”

“Anyone whose anyone is gonna be drawn to him, and the organization he was a part of,” Giran went on, taking another drag. “All the evil that’s been scattered around for so long, will be coming together.”

In the back alleys, the forgotten city streets, all around, everyone had heard the words Stain had, and it had lite a fire, that the Heroes couldn’t begin to bring under control. In one corner of Japan, a girl watched the video, grinning from ear to ear, face blushing brightly, as she stood surrounded by bodies and blood across the walls. Elsewhere, a young man in leather, and covered in piercings and scars, understood all too well what the Hero Killer had in mind.

A young man, resembling a reptile on two feet, covered himself in gear and a mask just like the Hero Killer, taking as many knives and blades with him as he could, smiling like a madman, as another, in gas mask and gear, watched the carnage of Stain unfold with a grin to himself. Others would rally, some driven by a lust for power, money and darker desires, some to free themselves of bigotry and hatred that came from his society, but all seeking what the Hero Killer had spoken of; a new, better world, and a correct society.

And even beyond them, a massive being, perhaps a beast not unlike Godzillo, perhaps a human, perhaps something else entirely, began to move again. He had sensed a change in the air, a shift of sorts. He had been stationed here, but he moved again, not going to the city, as par his orders, and remaining in the hidden valleys and mountains, but still bothered by what his senses told him. Something important was happening with his master, and he wasn’t there to guard or see to his needs. It bothered the giant immensely.

The corrupted Seed Stain had told Tomura he represented, was about to bear a fruit of sorts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm surprising myself at how fast I'm doing these. I might burn out soon and have to take a break. But I'll enjoy this story til my engines burn out. This was a breather chapter set after the big fights, so expect some exposition and all regarding Ven/Izu and Goji, the LoV and Kinzo and his Boss. I originally wanted to also include a brief cameo of the Church of New Darkness (Kletus' Cult from the Comics), but thought it would make it too heavy. Likewise, including a different spin on Tsu's fight with Innsmouth also had to be moved to the next chapter.
> 
> I was also operating after one viewer said it was too much like canon but just with Venom, and tried to overcompensate, so the rewrite that you're reading I think is the best direction.


	22. Shadow over Iwato

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Froppy goes through her training, but comes horrifically close to what Izuku has been hiding.

Izuku had had a somewhat busy week needless to say, but he was grateful he was had learned so much and that Godzillo had given him and Venom some pointers to improve their abilities, and more importantly, that something even worse was at work then the League of Villains. He was sitting back at in the backstage, as Godzillo and Endeavor were questioned about how they had managed to work together to restrain the Hero Killer and bring him to justice.

Izuku, meanwhile, was stuck waiting for it to finish. Godzillo had given him a pass for a while to rest for some reason. Both after the fight he had been through, and horrendous facts facing him now, with Shinzokumure and his group stalking the two. Izuku’s mind, however, was on what his peers were up to while he waited.

“Probably wasting their time, you saw Yaoyoruzu, stuck doing commercials!” Venom hissed with a laugh. “Truly a sad waste of time!”

Izuku nodded, remembering seeing the commercials with Kendo and the Pro-Hero Uwuambi. It was kinda sad really. He knew both of them were credible heroes-in-training. He hoped they got some training outside of doing ads and stuff.

“Hopefully the others didn’t get as bad a deal.” Izuku muttered to himself.

“Hopefully.” Venom growled.  
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Katuski Bakugou followed by Best Jeanist, as always, simmering with barely contained anger and contempt. He had been forced to wear Best Jeanist’s style of jeans instead of the loose pants he wore with his custom, and his hair had been combed over into a smoothed over top. Many things drove Katsuki mad. Birds chirping too loud in the morning, his favorite TV show not being on, Deku looking at him, but he had found messing with his hair to make him look ‘presentable’ to a bunch of extras was one more thing to add to a very, very long list.

Best Jeanist had insisted on going out today and doing extra work, using his Quirk to save Kittens from trees, help old ladies and others. It seemed so useless, but given how everyone and his sidekicks reacted, this was not only usual for him, but he was in fact doing extra work. According to Best Jeanist, any chaos allowed to develop would sow discord and bring out the worst behavior in the worst behavior. Heroes always had to set an example, especially after Hosu.

“Bakugou, tell me, what is the purpose for these patrols? Why do heroes do them?” Best Jeanist asked, as they walked along the streets, past other extras doing their useless business and such.

Bakugou grinned madly, heat building his palms. “If we walk around, we can find villains to beat up easier.”

Best Jeanist sighed, shaking his head not for the first time throughout this internship. “Noooo. It’s so we build trust with the community. It weaves a tapestry of trust between the community and those who protect it, understand?”

“I think you just like the attention.” Grumbled Bakugou, glaring off to the side.

Not for the first time since he started this internship, Bakugou found himself thinking the same thing. ‘I choose the wrong agency. But at least Deky choose a movie star. His dumbass is probably wasting time polishing his teeth or working on interviews. No matter what happens this week, I’ll be ahead!”  
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Of all the students, Tsuyu Asui’s job seemed the most mundane, trivial and even laborious. She had cleaned the deck of Selkie Mariner’s coastal patrol ship, and after two hours of hard work, was ready for a break. As she wiped the sweat from her brow, she heard Sirius, one of Selkie’s sidekicks approach. She could always tell when Selkie was coming. Her steps were lighter then the more rugged, heavily built sailors that assisted Selkie, as well as the Hero himself being a powerful figure. Sirius walked around the corner, holding two cans of soda.

“Ready for a break, Froppy?” She called cheerfully.

“Ribbit.” Tsu replied in the affirmative, having just finished all her work.

After sitting down and getting a nice cold drink, they had gotten to talking about the Hero Work studies. Sirius had laid out all the disgusting things she had to do during her own internships. Cleaning underwear, washing the decks and all the other things.

“It took a while to figure what was important in heroing.” Sirius remarked, after going over everything. “I think it’ll be the same for you.”

Froppy had been lucky to get out of laundry duty so far, but behind her usual unfeeling visage, she was not exactly eager. ‘I’m not sure how anyone can learn from that.’

“So what is that makes Hero work so important?” Tsu asked, not wanting to prod too deeply on the whole underwear cleaning.

“That’s something for you to figure out on your own.” Sirius remarked.

Tsuyu had a feeling that was the answer she was going to get, but figured it wouldn’t hurt to ask. First hand knowledge probably would be important to discovering what was most important part of this whole Internship. Whatever was about to happen next was interrupted by the heavy steps from Selkie himself, coming around the corner.

“Froppy, did you finish everything?” He asked quickly, seemingly having something else on his mind.

“Yes, she did, and I’ve been monitoring her.” Sirius said with a smile, bringing Froppy into a close hug.

“We just got an alert from the Coast Guard, smugglers have made out with some high class relics and carvings from ancient Mongolia,” Selkie explained, seemingly bothered by something. “They might be also transporting drugs alongside that. We’re heading out immediately.”

He turned to leave, before stopping suddenly, and turning to Froppy. “Good work getting everything done. You’ve been working hard since Day 1. Good job.”

Within a few minutes, Froppy and Sirius had untied the boat, and where heading out to seas, directed with the rest of the crew to the location of the suspicious boat they believed involved in the crime.  
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Innsmouth answered the phone on his personal smuggling vessel, waiting for the call to come in from the man who had hired them. He shifted in his chair nervously, not liking have to wait, and chewed on a chocolate bar. He remembered being hired and striking the deal with the guy, but some things felt off about the meeting, especially right after. It felt like there were gaps…

He jumped slightly as the phone rang, grabbing it and answering. “Hello, is that you Al Hazred?”

“In a way, yesssss.” A low, growling voice hissed. Innsmouth shuddered at the sound. It didn’t even sound human, more like an inhuman beast pretending to be one.

“You sound nothing like him, is this a hero sting?” Innsmouth demanded, almost not wanting to hear it keep talking. It’s voice alone was just too unsettling.

“Calm yourself, I’m ssssstill part of the Church, I’m operating on Supreme Prophet Kitab’s behalf, understood?” The voice responded in anger. “Do not waste time with this!”

“Fine, fine, what do you want?” 

“A Status report, as we laid out!” The Being barked, growing more agitated. He did seem the most patient benefactor.

“Two of my crew had to hide the drugs elsewhere, the ship they used they think is compromised,” Innsmouth remarked. 

“My contacts will be there shortly, do not fail.” The being hissed, voice low and barely audible, like a threatening purr from a serpent.

“We’re the best smugglers in the Pacific.” Innsmouth boasted angrily, not at all wanting anyone to insult him or his siblings/crew. “Good luck finding anyone half as good to do this, especially now.”

“Fine, fine, apologiesssss.” The being growled, sounding apologetic. Innsmouth gave a small smile to himself in pride. No matter how arrogant an employer, he knew just what to say to remind them who the best Smuggler around was. “Is their hiding place for the drugs, and the artifacts, secure?”

“The crates are water-proof, and according to the captain being he was knocked out, everything was sealed in special bags,” Innsmouth stated. “It’s fine.”

The being seemed to hiss again, this time more happily, seemingly nodding on the other end. “Good, good. Your service will be honored. Prophet Kitab was wondering, if perhaps this could be made a more permanent arrangement.”

“No.” Innsmouth replied bluntly. He never would saddle himself with any group. He was not interested especially in not a cult. “Anything else?”

“None...” The being hissed, angered, before the call was ended.

Innsmouth shifted back in his chair, before drawing out his plans further, and charting where to head next. His safe houses could work, and if the lines were secure, like this “Church” always promised, he wouldn’t have to worry too much about anyone coming to early.  
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Froppy stood among the other sailor heroes aboard the Ookie Mariner, listening to Selkie direct them and lay down the ground work of the mission ahead. His usual cheerful demeanor and trying to look cute seemed to have fallen away, and from what he was saying, she could understand his change in demeanor. 

“We’re dealing with drug runners as well as smugglers,” He concluded. “The artifacts they have a priceless, one of a kind, and bound for museums in China and Mongolia. These villains are dangerous, and will be cornered. I want everyone to be careful.”

Any other cargo would’ve been one thing, but this was all high-value stuff. Froppy wondered what exactly could have him so on edge though. Surely he had taken down drug runners and smugglers before.

“Selkie, sir, if I may, what’s so dangerous, beyond the drug running, of course.” Froppy asked tentatively.

“Well, that’s a good question. Thing is, the artifacts have links to a supposed cult,” Selkie explained. “Nothing concrete, but they might be linked to some grisly murders in Korea, America and elsewhere. I have no idea if they’re involved in this, but take no chances, any of you.”

Froppy bristled slightly. She had signed up to take on villains, but Cults were something she wanted little to do with. The idea always unnerved her, especially whatever group Selkie had just described. The rest of the crew seemed put off and bothered by it to. Selkie and his crew had seen a lot on the high seas, some gigantic beasts they had to help Godzillo wrangle in, smugglers, human traffickers, terrorists belong to everything from Red Bamboo to even pirates back in the day. But a Cult was something very new, something that seemed out of their skill set.

Still, a job was a job, and drug dealing was still something that could not be tolerated. Selkie seemed to sense the tenseness in his crew, bringing his paws to his chin and pulling out a goofy smile.

“Are we good crew?” He asked with the usual innocent, childish voice.

His crew groaned at his antics, even as they continued. Froppy simply hid a small smile at his antics, and waited for the rest to do their thing. She observed and watched them, and would do any support when called upon.

One of the crew took the radio, listening in for a moment, before turning. “Sir, we’ve got reports of a Fishing ship that was in the area of the smugglers’ highjacking.”

“Set a course there immediately, I’ll scout ahead!” Selkie ordered, quickly moving to the edge of the boot out of the bridge, and jumping overboard.

Within moments, he was spearing through the water faster then any normal human, and releasing periodic clicks from his teeth and tongue, looking for any objects of the ordinary. It was practiced and precise, his knowledge of the seas, all the fish, Squids, whales and such, the rocks and coral, he could filter out from what sounds his sonar would make hitting any floating objects, like bodies, crates or anything else that didn’t belong in the seas.

If anything was hiding, he would know it.  
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The fishing boat had been moving through the seas, cutting through the area, the sun having already dipped out of sight, and the night beginning, before a massive search light beamed down upon them. Selkie and two of his crew could make out three people, throwing their hands up to block the intense lights.

“This is the Ookie Mariner, Hero Agency with the Coast Guard!” Selkie shouted from the intercoms, still slightly dripping from the scouting venture. “We’re here to inspect the crew, supplies and anything onboard. Please cooperate so we can all be along our way as quickly as possible.”

After a few moments of preparation and docking alongside each other, Selkie and two of his Sidekicks climbed aboard, and began their inspection. None of the crates onboard matched the description of those that held the drugs or artifacts. Whatever was inside them, was the usual fishing supplies and preserved food for fishing expeditions. Something just felt off, about the captain and the crew.

Selkie had rubbed shoulders and interacted with fishermen. These two, with their squid-like beaks and tentacle-like hair, knew their way around a ship, but their body language, how they talked, even how they smelled, didn’t remind him of any kind of fishermen in all his years. Something was off about them.

“I told you, we’re fishermen, just that, just bringing in the haul for today.” The captain said, resembling a baseline human male.

“You seem to have a strangely light crew tonight.” Selkie replied, studying the two flanking him closely.

“Just a quick sortie. These are, uh, friends’ family, who wanted them to get some fishing under their belt.” The Captain explained quickly, sounding a little much like he was trying to keep his cool. “They’ve been on some boats, but never a fishing one.”

“Hmm, interesting.” Selkie noted, giving them a sideways glance.

“If we’re all done, we can head along our way, right?” The Captain asked. “These two are interested in going along their way.”

The word choice was not lost on Selkie. It was almost too obvious that the Captain was trying to signal something to them, but Selkie choose to keep playing stupid and oblivious. He needed to be in just the right position before he launched his attack. He planted his foot on the large doors within the center of the ship.

“Open this up, then we’ll leave, okay?” He stated, looking at the Captain right in the eye.

The man fidgeted for a few moments, but nodded quickly. “We store fish in there, but if that’s what you want...”

The bay doors were open. The putrid stench of old fish getting dragged in, net after net, year after year, hit Selkie like a tidal wave, he and his crew grunting from the stench, before looking down. Other then some outlines of the holding bay, Selkie couldn’t see a thing. He leaned in a bit closer, trying to catch a glimpse of anything, anything at all.

“I can’t see a thing.” One of his sidekicks remarked in annoyance.

The three looked as deep as they could into the darkened pit, as the three crewmen positioned themselves behind them, and without a word, shoved them in, a moment later, the sounds of splashing sounding below. The two Smugglers moved closer to the Ship Captain.

“Listen, I helped you get past them, you’ll let me go, right?” He asked, shaking slightly in fear.

“After you almost tried to get us caught? You think we’d miss that?” The one in blue hissed in anger. “You’re lucky we got other things to do.”

With that, the two tossed him in as well, and closed the trap doors over them. The One in Red looked around, to make sure there were no other heroes around, and with that, gestured for his brother to follow.

“Let’s get the stuff and head back to Boss Innsmouth.” He said, as they ran to the edge and jumped off the edge, and into the ocean waters.

Selkie, meanwhile, was not idle. He clicked away, sending out small soundwaves around the ship and out, before beginning to click in Morse Code. He just hoped Sirius would be listening in. The crew sat for several minutes ideal, waiting for their boss to return, before Sirius’ ears perked up.

“Wait, I’m picking something up.” She said, as the last crewmen and Froppy fell silent, watching her from afar, not even daring to breath. After a moments more, she turned to the last crewmen. “They fell into a trap, but they’re fine. The real ship isn’t far, somewhere off to the West.”

“We’ll pursue immediately then.” The crewmen remarked, taking the will, and tuning the ship’s radar.

Froppy shifted uncertainty at that. “Should we leave the Captain? If there’s some Cult running around...”

Sirius held up her hands to stop the younger hero, shaking her head. “I know you’re nervous, and given, everything, I think we all are, but Selkie is a pro, and knows what he’s doing. Trust in him, and us, and we’ll win this, ok?”

“Kero.” Froppy said in the affirmative, nodding once, as the ship lurched and continued onwards.

She wasn’t sure about this, but would trust someone who had been in the field longer then her. It was the only logical thing to follow. As they departed, Selkie within the fish holding pen, turned to the terrified Captain.

“You did good, cluing us in, but I need to know,” He remarked. “Is there anyway out of here?”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The ship continued to travel into the night, hardly stopping. The journey took them to distant Iwato Island. The rocky outcroppings were nothing special. A few fishing fleets from Osaka had gone out here, but in the 50s were forced to stop for some unexplained reasons. Although it was never revealed what it was that occurred, Fishermen stayed away from the place. They believed the rocky, abandoned islands were haunted by anything from ghosts, demons, and even sea dragons. It was ridiculous, but to those that spent their lives at Sea, it was best not to try their luck.

As such, it made perfect sense for the smugglers to hide in Iwato Island. Since no fishermen stopped by here, very few Hero and Coast Guard patrols would be stopping by either. As such, Sirius wasn’t that surprised when she saw the ship was parked at Double Rock, a formation just outside the main island. It was a gigantic claw had carved it into place long ago, but again, Sirius didn’t make it her goal to try and believe fishermen’s tales.

“There they are, cut the engines, and let’s go in quietly.” Sirius ordered.

The three had made their way onto a more stable face of the rocks, to the left of the boot, on the main Iwato Island now. It was here they would begin the operation. After carefully climbing around the rock face, the three spotted the only look out, a female with an identical quirk to the two on the fishing boat.

“Froppy, see if you can bring her here to us.” Sirius whispered

With a silent nod, the Frog-like Hero’s tongue slipped out and lashed forward, winding and twisting around, before getting near the Look-out, wrapping around her chest and waist, and zipping back around to bring her to the three. She made a few panicked yells to try and get the attention of one of her compatriots, before being dragged to the three heroes, Sirius clamping her hand over her mouth.

“You don’t make a sound, and we won’t rough you up, got it?” Sirius warned.

After tying her up, and edging a little closer to the boat, it was quickly determined there was only one visible in the cabin, the other having not yet arrived. The three quietly lowered themselves onto the boat, only the quiet sounds of the water hitting the sides and the rocks audible.

“There’s one guy left.” Sirius reported. “I can’t hear any others. Though...there’s soemthing off about him. Is he talking to himself?

“I’ll drag him out.” Mike, the last crewmen declared, quickly approaching the cabin, before a jet of ink soundly shot out. He recoiled in shock, clawing at his face. “My eyes!”

A reddish tentacle sprang from the cabin, slamming into his chest and throwing him into the rock wall a few meters behind them, before more of the tentacles shout out all around him, smashing and breaking apart everything around him, a tentacle lashing out and wrapping around Sirius’ midsection and pulling her towards the figure.

Froppy was taken aback by his appearance. Even in the world of Quirks he was...otherworldly. He had red flesh, four tentacle-like arms, fingers complete with suckers upon them, eight fingers on each hand, and four tentacles around his mouth. A dark red hooded vest and elf-like shoes finished his outfit. His eyes briefly flashed red, as he glared at them.

“Hello Heroes! Happy you could join us!” Innsmouth declared with a laugh, drawing Sirius close to him. “Here I was thinking we’d get away with it. My are you persistent. But all that’s left is a girl and some kid. Pathetic.”

He suddenly stiffened, as though hearing someone else, growling to himself, before shouting at someone who wasn’t there. “I don’t care about ‘underestimating them’, I’ve won!”

Sirius reached behind, pulling out a Combat club, extending it behind her back and raising it strike him while he was distracting, only for a black tentacle to shoot out from his shoulder, different from the others. It looked like a mass of black goo given shape, it’s texture slimy, white veins across it’s liquid-like surface. The tentacle struck Sirius’ hand with precision timing, as Tsuyu stiffened at the sight of it.

‘Is his Quirk...the same as Midoriya’s?” She thought in horror. Every part of her was telling it wasn’t possible, that he already had this Octopus Quirk. He couldn’t have two, no one in the world did.

She prepared to fight, only for the man to tighten his hold on Sirius. “Ah, ah, wouldn’t want to get carried away, have your friend get crushed her.”

He stiffened again, looking around in anger. “Stop doing that! We’re getting out of this quick and smooth damn it! No fights or ‘tests of strength’!”

Froppy looked on in a mix of confusion and horror at the situation. Either he was just a crazy pirate who had drank too much ocean water, or he had taken a bit of his own product. Either way, Froppy was now at the mercy of this strange monster of a man.

His rant was interrupted by a sound going off, a brief click and static, before a voice sounded off from it. Froppy and Innsmouth looked to Sirius, where the sound was coming from, before Innsmouth delicately plunked the radio from her ear.

“This is the crew, we’re safe, the captain helped us out, but Selkie has gone on ahead,” The voice sounded. “What’s your location, have you found the smugglers?”

Innsmouth quickly clicked it off, before handing it to Froppy. “Listen kid, tell them you couldn’t find us, tell them everything is alright. Help retrieve my cargo, even those useless artifacts, and I won’t hurt your friend here.”

“Froppy no…!” Sirius shouted, before Innsmouth’s hand wrapped around her mouth.

“What’s it gonna be, kid? You want your friend dead?” He taunted with a laugh.

Froppy thought hard on what Sirius had said about being a Hero, having to figure it out for yourself, have faith in your comrades and all their abilities. She knew what she had to do now. Those words suddenly clicked together, all of it lighting a spark in her mind. Sirius and Innsmouth watched expectingly, neither quite sure what would happen next.

“I understand now.” She muttered, holding the radio device close. She took a deep breath, and spoke quickly. “The smugglers are at Iwato Island, in Double Rock!”

Innsmouth dropped Sirius, blinded by rage, as he swung his tentacles outwards. “You little brat!”

Froppy dodged every attack, jumping from one part of the rocky outcroppings to another, easily dodging his strikes. Innsmouth shouted in rage, trying everything to finally get her.

“Quit jumping all around!” He shouted futilely. His body shuddered, as two blackened tentacles lashed out from his shoulders, and expertly struck at Froppy, wrapping around her waist and right arm. 

With a smooth motion, he slammed her into a nearby rock wall, Froppy shaking from the sudden force, stunned as ever by the blow, before he jumped up and crashed in as well, looming over, the two blackened tentacles cold and almost lifeless, ever so slightly squirming as they held her, like maggots in rotted meat. She would’ve been disgusted if her mind was shaking from the force of the blow, and Innsmouth was about to do all manner of horrible things to her.

“Now, I’m gonna make you suffer, kid, understand?” He growled, glaring at her with almost inhuman yellow eyes, flashign completely black for a second, before he shuddered, shaking his head. “I don’t care what ‘prophecy’ you’re talking about, she’s going to…!”

Suddenly, something exploded from the waters below them, and before Froppy could even blink, two objects slammed into his body, sending him off her, and flying further up onto Iwato Island. The two objects turned out to be his remaining two minions.

“Boss!” They called out desperately, before falling back into the waters with enough force to knock them out.

“My Brothers!” He shouted in rage, the black tentacles releasing Froppy, and withdrawing back into him. He turned his wrathful glare upon Selkie, he appeared from the waters, bearing a confident smile.

With barely a second to process anything, Selki shot out like a torpedo, slamming into the Octopus villain, and carrying him, punching into his chest and body several times, before both slammed into the boat, rocking it, as Innsmouth fired a blast of ink straight at Selkie’s eyes. The Ocean hero didn’t lose a beat, easily dodging every tentacle attack the Smuggler desperately threw at him, letting off random clicks from his mouth, knowing exactly where Innsmouth was at all times.

With a final battle cry, Selkie slammed feet first into Innsmouth, dropping down from the rock ledge, and knocking the villain out cold, and into the water. Froppy dropped down beside him, breathing hard, as the hero took a deep breath. Innsmouth wasn’t quite the tough badass pirate he made himself out to be to everyone else, Froppy could see that now.

“You two did alright. Let’s wrap these three up and...” He began, before an explosion of water went off, Innsmouth jumping back into the fight.

He slammed into the ship, shaking and rocking it, as his body took uneasy step after uneasy step, as if he was puppet under someone’s strings.

“Round two huh?” Selkie said with a cocky grin. Innsmouth was a Smuggler and dangerous to low-level heroes and rookies, but to a pro, he was just a stubborn idiot.

“As myself, and it will be an honor.” The Smuggler remarked, his voice muddled and distorted, as blackish goo spread across his body before them.

Like a smooth, glossy suit, it overtook his body, his tentacle-like arms gaining clawed fingers, his forearms and hands completely white, and his facial tentacles took on the glossy black appearance of the rest of his suit. His face now looked like a skull, his eyes now pure red, as the being rolled his shoulders.

“Innsmouth is a reprehensible host, but I go with what I am given by the Church.” The being now using Innsmouth’s body remarked, ‘cracking’ his knuckles. “But I will not pass up on a battle. Come, it has been a long time since I had a good fight. You will disappoint.”

Selkie clicked once more, as Froppy froze in terror. It was a different thing entirely, but this was something just like Izuku’s Venom. There was no other way, Innsmouth somehow had two Quirks. Selkie however, only got into a combat stance, still blinded by the ink attack from before. He jumped forward, taking the being off his feet, and into the waters again. The being’s red eyes twinkled with delight, as they both went under.

Froppy ran to the side, still absolutely stunned by everything she had seen. He had to have two quirks, she thought to herself, more to reassure herself more then anything. After all, Venom had often damaged Izuku’s body and recreated his organs, so it stood to reason Innsmouth’s quirk had altered him to look like a squid, while the ink was just pieces of the Quirk being shot out.

‘I guess it makes sense. We can ask him when Selkie brings him in.’ She thought, looking over the edge a moment longer. She turned to Sirius, checking on her. Innsmouth had knocked her out, but she was breathing, and didn’t seem injured.

At that moment, a loud splash and a thumb sounded, as the boat shook again. She breathed a sigh of relief, and turned, expecting to see Selkie once more. Instead, the black and white being was laying his unconscious form down on the boat, looming over her in the darkened night. The creature silently approached, and, as he got close, grabbed her under the chin, and turned her head slightly, inspecting her.

“Indeed, you are the one the Prophet spoke of.” He muttered with a nod, before releasing her and indicating Selkie. “I apologize for attack, drugs are below me, but we needed Innsmouth and his lackies, and I could not have your team and teacher intervene.”

“But...you….you’re his Quirk.” She managed nervously, gulping slightly.

“I am Dreadface, I am no one but my own.” He introduced, before pointing to Selkie. “He put up a good fight, but I do not need to breath in water, he did. One punch, and he was taking in sea water. I wish I could’ve fought him longer, but my duties are first.”

“And they are?” Froppy asked, not at all sure why she was talking to this...thing called Dreadface.

“A long story, but...familial bonds tie me to the Prophet’s group. The drugs are yours, but I need the relics.” Dreadface replied. “I will leave Innsmouth to you and your people, but let me have the relics.”

“You’re criminals, and letting you go would be against the law.” She protested. After figuring out what being a Hero meant, from Sirius' wisdom and advise, and everything they had gone through, it seemed like an insult to let him go.

“Miss Tsuyu Asui, I am prohibited from harming you. You are, after all, destined to bear host to one of my kin.” He remarked, sounding increasingly annoyed. “And I do not wish to harm someone dishonorably.”

Froppy’s head spun at the words he was saying. None of it made sense. Had Innsmouth actually killed her or hit her on the head, and this was some strange dream or dying vision she was going through? He grumbled in annoyance, snarling in some tongue Froppy did not know to himself, before returning to his normal expression.

“I have helped you have I not? I controlled his body throughout. It was Sirius is unconscious, and he never laid a hand on you beyond the initial attacks.” Dreadface explained. “Surely, if I was a criminal like he, you would be dead, correct?”

She nodded, still uncertain of this creature. What even was this that stood before her? A figure in black that pointed to her, with eyes of fire. It defied any logic she was used to operating in.

“So, if you release me, I will commit no further transgressions upon you and yours.” Dreadface stated, looking over his shoulder nervously, before turning to her once more. “If you do cross talons with me, I will turn myself into your authorities, and serve the sentence your kind requires. No questions asked.”

“Why not just overpower me? You’re far stronger.” Tsuyu asked, already regretting the word choice. She didn’t want to put the idea in his head.

“I could, but I would much rather not harm someone deemed important.” He answered, before the black started to peel away from Innsmouth’s body. “Whether you support it or not, you will be a host much like your friend Izuku Midoriya. The Supreme Prophet has foreseen it. Good day. Grow strong and become an honorable hero worthy of fighting.”

The black, wracked liquid peeled off Innsmouth, as the being dropped on his face like a bag of bricks, and it dropped into the water, floating away on the currents. Even if she wanted to, there was no way she could stop him now. She simply turned to Sirius and Selkie, tending to their wounds as she prepared for the Coast Guard to show up, the eerie silence of the island night closing in around her.  
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After the Coast Card rounded by the Innsmouth Crew, and retrieved the drugs, Froppy was braised for her heroism on the field, Selkie calling her a true hero throughout. He had barely seen Innsmouth’s transformation, and assumed after he was knocked out, Froppy had finished him off. She didn’t dare answer otherwise. Whatever Dreadface was, knew her name and one classmate. It would be dangerous to try and go after him, and, as she reasoned, it was something all it's own. They wouldn't believe anything she said on the black goo creature even if she told the truth. It was difficult to keep a secret, especially from Sirius and Selkie, after everything, but she would have to stomach the lie.

She would definitely have to see Izuku afterwards about this. He had to know. Until then, however, she’d forget what she saw, and try and put on a brave face. The coast card shook her hand, telling her he couldn’t wait to work with her on the job, once she became a full hero. She smiled triumphantly, this at least going better then everything else she had dealt with the night before.

Although the drugs had been retrieved, no one could find the relics and such from Mongolia and China that were supposed to be with them. This was shrugged off. More investigations would be launched, trying to find them, but they were assumed lost to the seas.

Froppy and the rest of Selkie’s crew were ready to finish the rest of the job, seeing the four villains off, and finishing any paper work, that few noticed a tall man in a light blue suit, watching from a far, his eyes covered by shades, who disappeared into the crowds, showing a badge to the cops, and asking to examine the unconscious Innsmouth when they were done.

'Midoriya will know what happened here,' She thought, putting on a brave smile for the rest. 'He has to.'  
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Dreadface, in a more humanoid body this time, walked along the darkened cavern/halls leading deeper within the hideout. It was but one of many temples he had to travel through. They had no time for one location or fixture as their capital. He walked along, in full view, unnoticed by the others, dressed in thick black cloaks and hoods obscuring their bodies, many of them bearing a starry nightsky-like pattern across them. Many bowed their heads to him as they crossed paths, stepping aside. He paid them no heed, too concerned with his mission to stop now. It had been hours since he had any flesh or bone to chew upon, but the mission was all that mattered now.

It moved towards a set of gigantic wooden doors, a red spiral painted across it’s surface, as two more hooded beings opened the gates for him, the doors grinding slowly open, as he stepped forward. The inner sanctum he found himself in was a bit more decorated, a grand alter at the head of numerous pews, torches of purple flame casting a surreal, lambent glow to the whole scene, and several carvings and paintings along the walls around it.

At the head, just behind the alter, was a simple throne, seated a tall figure in the black cloaks just like the others outside, but taller, far taller. All that could be seen by Dreadface was it’s clawed hands, black like pitch. It raised it’s head, two thin, slivered eyes glaring out from the darkness of the ragged cloak at him, before it’s fang maw opened, speaking in a thin, papery voice.

“Did you get our treasures, Dreadface?” 

The Symbiote did not answer, going on one knee, and presenting the perfectly preserved relics to the Cloaked figure. It nodded slightly, raising a claw and gesturing to itself. Dreadface stood and made his way to the other, presenting the tomes and carvings upon the alter.

“At last, the ones who came before us, their knowledge is ours once more.” The being said with a nod, not rising from his throne, before cocking his head at Dreadface. “You wiped Innsmouth’s memory, correct?”

“He will not remember a single thing about your hiring him.” Dreadface confirmed with a nod.

“Excellent, the Church of New Darkness is not yet ready to undo the works of man.” The being hissed, clicking it’s fangs slightly. “But with this, we will find the Three Holy Ones. The will of the Void will be heeded. None shall deny our holy passage.”

“As you say.” Dreadface remarked. He was not interested in the esoteric, the holy quoting and all. He was here to serve their same God. He almost hated how...overthinking this Klyntar made things. ‘Knull should be honored by war and strength, not words and relics. She would want none of this’ 

The Symbiote withdrew from the body, going deeper within, as the figure pulled back it’s hood, revealing his face to Dreadface, a middle eastern man, of bony features, black scars half-seared, half painted onto the cheeks and skin around and under his eyes, a small beard on his chin. Dreadface had long ago come into the service of the Church, and this man had directed his power for years. Even if Dreadface found him flowery in his speech, he would not deny his abilities.

“Now, we wait. But we watch as we wait. Tomura Shigaraki, Izuku Midoriya. These and many others must be watched.” He ordered, gesturing to the relics. “Knull has granted me and Zzzxx visions and names of those most important. We will watch them. They will hold the keys, within their bodies and Symbiotes, to our victory. Especially Shigaraki and his group.”

“Understood, Supreme Prophet Kitab Al Hazred.” Dreadface stated, bowing his head once more.

“Good, do as you wish, leave us to contemplate the will of the void.” The Supreme Prophet ordered, looking down once more at the relics before him. Dreadface quickly withdrew, bowing one last time, and creeping off back into the temple.

There was much left to do, and the Day of Knull drew closer every hour...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this was a bit of a detour. I decided to use Froppy's story here to wrap things into the wider Symbiote mythos and how things work in this new crossover universe.
> 
> Some may recognize Iwato Island, but not the two newcomers. Dreadface was a symbiote from Fantastic Four, but not one of Venom's kind. He just liked to fight things. I figured it would emphasis Knull's influence to have non-Klyntar Symbiotes in the ranks of his worshippers and all.
> 
> Zzzxx was a Klyntar mutant in X-Men, but I reworked him here into something new. I thought it would be more interesting to have a character with little development crafted into the Church's leader, rather then retconning Scorn into it. 
> 
> The Church of New Darkness, with it's roots in Lovecraft inspired Cults, was linked to Innsmouth, but they'll be in the background for quite a while. I don't want the plot getting to bogged down in Symbiotes, but they're a sort of fourth power, between the League, The Heroes, the Symbiote Task Force and Knull's worshippers. I based their outfits on the Prophets of the Dark Side from Star Wars.
> 
> Kitab Al Hazred himself is named after the book of the dead and it's writer from Lovecraft as well.
> 
> And Dreadface's thoughts on Knull are not a typo. Since he's a different Symbiote type, he and his kind interpret Knull as female, the Klyntar see him as male. Figured it would play into the ambiguity of gender among Symbiotes, with even their God being any he/she/whatever they would want.


	23. Intership's End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku and Venom return to UA, as other forces continue to come together and work in the background

The end of the week had come quickly, far quicker then Izuku would’ve expected. He stood in the training area, just a few yards from the doors. Godzillo had been busy dealing with a business deal of some sort, a call of some kind he would have to deal with soon. The Hero-Student waited for a while, shifting from foot to foot. Godzillo had insisted on seeing him off before he left. Rodan walked by, fiddling on his phone, before shutting it off and headed towards him.

“Oi, oi kiddo. Kinda sad to see ya go, I kinda liked having you around.” Rodan remarked with a grin. “I think you’ve got some good stuff going for ya.”

“Thank you sir.” Izuku answered, giving a single nod. Rodan had helped him and Venom develop their powers and synergy further.

“The Moth and Armadillo would like to see ya off, but tall, dark and spiky’s got himself a date, and the Moth’s busy with another job.” Rodan remarked with a shrug. “But I’m sure they’d be happy to see you off too. Tell Mina hello for us, will ya?”

“Will do.”

Rodan gave him the thumbs up and continued on, as Godzillo appeared out of his office, hands in his pockets, as his long coat billowed behind him. He looked sternly for a moment, no certain if he should lay into Izuku again over his disobedience, but he had been through enough, and needed to relax. He took a deep breath, as he approached the Up and Coming hero.

“Alright kiddo, please, for my sake as well as yours, don’t run into a fight like you did, okay?” Godzillo said with a tired sigh. “I got one kid of mine trying to drive me nuts, I don’t need two.”

“Sorry sir, I...I kinda had to and I swear I will be all the more....” Izuku began to ramble, before the Monster Hero laid a shoulder, silencing him.

“Keep up with what you’re doing, and don’t worry about my friend.” Godzillo said pointedly, anger briefly flashing in his eyes. “I’m going to be looking out for you from now on. I intend to not let anyone like him get close.”

Izuku was silent for a moment, before swallowing a bit. “Thank you sir.”

“None of that sir stuff.” Godzillo chastised, before taking his keys out. “Come on, I’ll drive you to the train.”

The drive over was silent, Nakajima suspecting Izuku was in conversation with the Symbiote, and decided to let them be. They had enough to deal with. He would let them have some peace and quiet for the car ride home. As he said, he would begin planning on how to deal with Kinzokumure and his faction. They were high ranking, they were powerful, and they were everywhere.

‘I cannot afford to lose.’ He thought, focusing on the road ahead. ‘If I fail in this, Izuku, my kid, a whole bunch of others, are going to be in a tight spot. I have to tear down the organization.’

Godzillo parked the car, as the train station awaited them. The two sat for a while, before Izuku stepped out.

Nakajima clicked his nails against the steering wheel for a moment, before cleairng his throat. “Hey kid, one last thing.”

“Yes Nakajima-Sensei?” Izuku asked, jumping slightly, and almost tripping over his own feet.

“I never got the chance to ask, what Hero name did you go with?” He asked.

“Deku, sir. That’s my Hero name. Deku.” He declared.

Godzillo gave him the thumbs up, before gesturing with his chin. “It’s a wonderful name. Now, catch your train. I ain’t driving you everywhere.”

Everything aside, he and Venom would make a great Hero Team all their own. Godzillo was sure of it.

‘I think you’ll be the first of many Symbiote Heroes, Deku.’ Godzillo thought.  
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Toshinori Yagi sat in private on his phone, waiting intently for his mentor to pick up the phone. The time for internships had almost come to an end, and his students would be coming back within a day or two. He was still chewing over everything they had done. Tsuyu Asui stopping a drug trade, Kyoka Jirou helping a hostage crisis, Izuku Midoriya, Tenya Iida and Shoto Todoroki assisting in the Hosu incident. He had a lot, almost the entire class, of heroes in training, that would’ve been worthy to receive his Quirk. The key was picking not only one with the right attitude, but also the right Quirk.

Tenya was smart, steadfast and focused, but given what could be around the corner, with an Old Rival, All Might felt someone else could’ve been better equipped. Still, no matter where he looked, he just couldn’t feel right about any of them. The best was one of the Second Year students, Mirio Togata, but for all his skill, strength and upbeat attitude, Toshinori didn’t think he was quite right for the role of the Next Number One.

One of the others would have to be chosen, but who?

“Toshinori, what took you so long to call me again?” Gran Torino’s grumpy voice caught through his thoughts like a knife. “You just want to ignore me til I kick the bucket?”

“No, no, sorry Gran Torino.” He replied in an apologetic tone, shaking his head. “I was just thinking about something.”

“You’ve got a lot to think about.” The older Hero remarked. “This Hero Killer I’ve seen on the news, quite inspired by you, and with that same presence, that way of capturing the mood. You might have things to deal with in the future from him.”

“I know, I know, I saw the reports too.” Toshinori agreed with a tired nod. Even without a direct view of his eyes, the Hero Killer’s mere presence on camera was as captivating as it was dangerous. It was just one more thing for him to deal with.

“What about a Successor, have you picked one yet?” Gran Torino asked expectingly.

“Sorry, not yet. I’m trying, and the whole class is good, but only one of them feels right.” All Might stated, tapping a finger against his skeletal chin. “I might have one picked out.”

“Which? Is it the Fire and Ice kid? That Frog girl was pretty good too.” Gran Torino listed off, before Yagi answered.

“I like the Midoriya kid. He’s got a strong Quirk, and something about him feels right.” Yagi answered, nodding to himself.

Gran Torino was silent for a moment, rubbing his scruffy chin in thought. “That kid with the monster Quirk, the one that acts like a suit? Why him?”

“It’s the attitude.” Yagi replied. “He’s got heart and a drive even some pros lack.”

“I would be worried of that kid. Not him, but his Quirk.” Gran Torino warned, taking a deep breath. “His Quirk seems wild and untamed, even now.”

“It does have a mind of his own.” Yagi confirmed. “Venom is what they call him.”

“There’s not telling what One for All could do to this Venom once Midoriya receives your gift,” Torino cautioned. Toshinori nodded. He had considered that as well. It’s what kept him from giving him the Quirk right away. “Where is he now? I believe Internships should be starting.”

“Godzillo’s agency, the Big Monster Hero on TV.” Toshinori answered.

“I grew up with his movies while you were in diapers, worked with his grandfather, don’t explain a thing about him to me, Toshinori!” Gran Torino nagged, as the Number One flinched on reflex from his teacher’s voice. “Still, that Toho Quirk is a wild one too. He might do some good.”

Yagi nodded, briefly wondering why none of his predecessors had ever passed on the One for All Quirk to one of the Nakajima Clan’s members. Even the weakest family members, like that one from France would’ve been unstoppable. He concentrated back at the subject at hand.

“He knows my secret, about my failing body.” Yagi stated. “I might prod him. It seems like he’s holding something back, and it worries me. The kid seems like he’s having to hide way too much.”

“Very foolish! Why would you do that!” Gran Torino nagged his student again, before munching on some steaming Takiyaki.

“His Quirk could see my organs, see all the damage caused. It’s...something else.” Toshinori explained. “There was no point lying when he could tell. He hasn’t revealed anything, but I want to start including him on some things.”

“Just be careful. This League of Villains, their minions, it’s too much like Him.” Torino said worriedly. “If he’s back, he might seek Midoriya, just for that Quirk.”

“He might be, he might not be.” Toshinori replied. “Let me just see how this plays out, and let me talk to Midoriya some more.”

“Alright, I won’t keep you from pursuing what you want. You were always a little too stubborn, even now.” Gran Torino grumbled, shaking his head. “Just good luck.”

“Thanks, stay safe, alright?” Toshinori replied.

“You need that advise more then me.” Gran Torino complained, as they said their good-byes and hung up.

All Might still had some paper work to fill out from both the job and his teaching. Aizawa had been busy with something, something he wouldn’t tell anyone else about. It wasn’t like him, but Toshinori wouldn’t pry too deeply into his business. He was probably either after a big villain bust, or preparing something ‘special’ for the students. Either way, Toshinori almost felt sorry for the Villains, if it was the former, and the students, if it was the latter.  
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The class had started mostly normal, some of the students nursing bruises and injuries from their studies, but nothing too serious. Nothing some gauss, bandages and some time taking it easy could heal. As the rest of the class relaxed and kicked back, discussing and gossiping amongst themselves over their Internships, Bakugou walked in, force once demure and trying not to draw too much attention. This had the effect of drawing Kirishima and Sero’s attention even further. Their curiosity at his strange attitude quickly melted into absolute disbelief and incredulity.

“Holy crap Bakugou, what the hell, you look ridiculous!” Sero and Kirishima both yelled, barely holding back laughter at his expense.

Indeed, his hair had been smoothed back, perfectly combed over. Had Venom been paying attention, with his frequent abuse of Izuku’s phone to listen to music, he might’ve compared such a look to David Bowie during his White Duke era.

Bakugou clenched a fist until his knuckles turned white, his eyes completely wide with rage, the iris and pupils almost invisible in the whites, as he spoke through clenched teeth. “Shut up you two, he kept combing it over. It stays like this no matter what I do! I’ll kill you both!”

“I’d like to see you try pretty boy!” Kirishima mocked with laughter.

Bakugou’s hair exploded back into shape, as his voice also exploded to life, filling the classroom once more. “What the hell did you call me!”

His rage merely prompted more laughter from the two at the sight. While he went after them to exact his revenge upon them, Mina, Jirou and Tsuyu were discussing their own internships away from the growing chaos and anarchy surrounding Bakugou.

“You guys got to actually fight villains? God, I’m so jealous.” Mina said, as Izuku came into the room.

“It was just logistics and getting hostages out.” Jirou remarked with a shrug, twirling one of her Earphone jacks absent mindedly.

“I just did some clean up and patrol,” Tsuyu added, tapping her chin slightly. “Oh yeah, and we put a stop to a bunch of Drug smugglers with potential links to a weird Cult.”

“What?!” Both of them yelped in surprise. They had heard plenty of news reports covering the Drug traffickers and the kidnapped Fish Captain, but nothing about a Cult. Mina’s eyes widened in shock and slight wonder. “You have to share.”

“Later, first I need to discuss something with Midoriya, in private.” She replied, lowering her voice. The two nodded, sensing it was not something to intrude upon, and let the Frog Girl to her secrets.

“So Ochako, how did your internship go?” Jirou asked, glancing at the other girl.

Ochako was in combat stance, her arm extended out, in a practiced martial arts fighting stance, eyes utterly focused, the energy and expression one of a woman ready to fight and deal with anything any villain could throw at her. The three turned and looked at her in surprise and worry. This was definitely an about face.

“It was very enlightening.” She murmured, seemingly lost in her combat haze.

“She seems to have had an awakening of some kind.” Tsu remarked, as the three watched her.

Izuku glanced at the corner of his eye in surprise from the back corner with Shoto and Iida. Venom did not appear from him, shifting slightly within Izuku’s chest and spoke to him. “Sometimes I really wish I had taken her as a host.”

Izuku should’ve been insulted, but he was so close to the Symbiote by now, that, he knew he meant no harm. And was probably part of some complicated scheme to get them together. Why a millions of year old Symbiote was so focused on getting some High Schoolers together was beyond Izuku. Perhaps without the ability to hunt down and devour criminals for fun, shipping was Venom’s next favorite activity?

“Man, all of that happening in a week, amazing.” Kaminari muttered in surprise to Mineta.

“Transformation? No Kaiminari! Women all over just hide their inner demonic nature!” Mineta claimed nibbling on his finger nails with a desperate, terrified expression.

“I have demon family members, I take offense to that!” Venom hissed in Midoriya’s ear, as the Host gave a strange look, before deciding to ignore the remark. Whatever Venom was rambling about now was either nonsense or wasn’t important. Venom continued to grumble to himself, about someone named ‘Leetha’.

“Dude what happened to you at Mt Lady’s residence?” Denki remarked in shock, not used to seeing Mineta like this, as he pulled his arm away from his teeth, hoping he wouldn’t nipple away his nail down to the quick. “Me on the other hand, I was a bit spoiled. I had it easy, but if you want to talk about a transformative experience, talk to those three.”

Iida flexed the fingers on his right hand, still feeling slightly numb there. It was a feeling he was getting more used to ever since the nerve damage he had sustained, but decided to keep it. Everyone turned to them, eager to hear the juicy details of the story. Venom at first felt pride welling up in him. Even if it was to mere students, the chance to show off and brag was something he enjoyed. Then he remembered that he had been sworn to silence by the Hosu Police, and he deflated slightly from within his host.

‘Can’t have any fun.’ He grumpily thought.

“Yeah the Hero Killer guy!” Sero said, as Bakugou manhandled them both for their insults to his hair.

“Yeah, I’m glad you all came out alive.” Kirishima managed.

“It must’ve been so frightening to get so close to such a villain, but at least Endeavor was there to save you.” Momo stated.

Izuku glanced at Shoto, who seemed to chewing over whether to spill the beans or not. He had never been happy with how things had turned out. Even after he left, he was giving Endeavor a lot of trouble over his inability to actually capture the Hero Killer on his own despite his years of experience. While Endeavor took it in stride, it was the smallest bit of satisfaction to Shoto.

“Yeah...yeah he saved us.” Shoto muttered, his face nearly inscrutable, and cold.

“I was watching the News on him, they think he might be linked to the League of Villains.” Ojiro stated, shaking his head. “I really wouldn’t want to imagine what USJ would’ve been like if he had shown up.”

“Yeah, a guy with swords would’ve stopped us.” Venom grumbled to Izuku, ignoring the fact Stain had, with some effort, managed to actually cut into them. Izuku decided to push that though. Venom had been touchy and angry about the cuts they endeared during the fight, thinking no human could’ve hurt them.

“Well hold on, yeah he’s scary, but did you see the video, Ojiro.” Denki said. “You can see his tenacity, his one track mind, kinda cool when you think about it.”

“Kaminari!” Izuku warned, trying to stop him before he said anything too insulting for Iida to hear.

“No, no, it’s fine.” Tenya replied, nodding to himself. “I understand why people would look up and be amazed by the Hero Killer, he’s got that passionate and driven attitude to bring people in.”

Tenya began to raise his arm upwards, as he straightened up, looking to the rest of the class. “However, his goals lead him to purge those who did not match his standards. So, to better act as your Class President, I will redouble my efforts along the Hero Path!”

His voice rose in triumph, as Izuku smiled in pride at his friend. Venom seemed grumpy having to listen this trite, but decided to let them do their thing. He had agreed to work with Izuku and fight alongside him til the end, so he would keep his opinions to himself, for just this once. Iida chopped his hand forward.

“Now, let’s sit and be ready to begin our class!” Tenya finished.

Tokoyami sighed, shaking his raven-like head. “He’s yelling now, nice Kaminari.”

“Sorry.” He muttered, shaking his head, as everyone shot him angry glares and disappointing glances.  
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After class started and All Might’s arrival, they were sent to the changing rooms to suit up and get ready for another field test of sorts. One the way to the changing rooms, Tsu stopped Midoriya, and brought him to the back of the lines, behind everyone else. He was honestly surprised she had something to say to him, and Venom, of course was rather excited by the development.

“Midoriya, I have something to say, and I’m not sure how to even start it.” She said quietly, a hint of nervousness in her voice. This was getting strange.

‘Tsu never acts like this usually.’ Midoriya thought in slight surprise.

“Some budding romance perhaps? I had my eye on you and Ochako, but I’ve been hosted to species that take multiple mates, so we could work with this and...” Venom began, before Midoriya turned bright red.

“Is something wrong?” Tsuyu asked, giving him a suspicious glance.

“Just Venom being nasty.” He managed nervously.

“I thought so. But speaking of, I encounter someone...like you.” She said, looking around as the class made their way through the halls. “Someone with a Quirk like Venom.”

Izuku almost stopped in his tracks in shock, before turning to her in surprise. “What did it look like?”

“Black, with a skull-like face.” She explained. “It called itself Dreadface.”

“I’ve never heard of one of my kind called that.” Venom responded in his ear. “Deku, I came here to get away from my kind and find my freedom, but if more are here, this world could become a colony no matter what we do.”

‘I’ll handle it, just listen.’

“He said something about me being destined to become a host too.” Tsu added, giving him a nervous glance. “Is that really a Quirk you have? I have serious questions about...all of this.”

Venom sprouted from his shoulder suddenly, looking around for a second, before hissing a bit. “Text us a location after class. We’ll explain everything.”

“Fine.” Tsuyu said with a shrug, as the two continued on. She wasn’t impatient for whatever truths Izuku had hidden were, but she had waited this long to hear him, she could wait a little longer.

‘Venom, should we really be involving her in this? She could become a target for Kinzokumure.’ Izuku thought nervously, scratching the back of his neck, as he looked around for any sign of the figure watching them.

“She’s involved now, she encountered one of my kind or something similar,’ Venom explained. “Either way, despite your instance, she’s a part of our little secret now, and not telling her makes her more vulnerable.”

‘This just might be getting too much for us to handle, is all I’m thinking.’ Izuku thought nervously. ‘Can we protect everyone?’

“One other Symbiote is easy. And if we rescue my kindred on Ogasawara, that’s about three others that could back us up.” Venom explained quickly. “I still don’t like so many here though.”

‘Why?’ Izuku asked, curious.

“I came here and joined you because I wanted to be my own warrior, no orders, no other Symbiotes to order me around.” Venom grumbled in agitation and resentment. “But saving them from these assholes should put them in my dept.”

Izuku wanted to ask why he wanted to be away from the rest of his kind, but now they were heading into the locker rooms. He figured asking Venom about his trust issues with other Symbiotes could come later. But Izuku could feel the resentment and hate bubbling in his voice. It reminded him of Shinso at the Sports Festival, and himself. Izuku had tried to keep himself hopeful and cheerful, but sometimes, after being bullied so terribly by Kaachan and the others, he sometimes wished he could get back at them, make them suffer for what they had done for years.

It was always All Might that reminded him of what he wanted, and while Venom had defiantly tapped into his more base and vile emotions, he was glad he had never felt the need to lash out like he had when he was younger. But Venom seemed to not share such a cheerful outlook.

‘He said he was about a few million years old.’ Izuku thought, slightly shocked given how immature and impulsive he could be. ‘If he’s like me, I couldn’t imagine enduring abuse for that long.’

He walked in, as Venom sprouted from his shoulder. “What are we doing?”

“I need to change into my gym uniform, my costume’s still damaged.” Izuku explained blankly, not sure what Venom was getting at or why he was asking. “Why?”

“I can alter myself into whatever cloths you need.” Venom explained, as Izuku lurched slightly, everyone moving to their lockers and such and getting undressed. The cloths across him shifted into a perfectly replica of his costume.

He gasped in surprise, as Kirishima looked up in shock. “No way, how the hell does Venom do that?”

“I didn’t know he could do it.” Izuku thought in surprise. It was a little...colder and felt more alive then the original, but it was definitely a perfect replication. “How?”

“My kind had developed ways to hide in plain sight in the time of your Romans, at the height of the Protoss Empire during the 4th Age of Taldia in the Galaxy’s history.” Venom explained within his brain, before vocalizing. “I can shape myself into weapons, we worked on shaping into cloths, but it took me a while to work things out.”

‘I have no clue what any of those things are.’ Izuku mentally grumbled. ‘Why couldn’t you do this before?’

“Your mother put a lot of work into the costume, it seemed rude.” Venom said earnestly, as Izuku raised an eyebrow. Since when did Venom care about being rude?

Izuku merely left, and waited by the door to the lockers. He had somethings to think about before they began whatever All Might was going to train them for.  
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All Might indeed had brought them to a new training field, and after laying out the basics of the new training seminar, explained it would be a fun rescue exercise within a hazardous factory zone. Basically, the goal was to ‘save All Might’, in a race against the other four students. 

“And remember keep the property damage to a minimum!” All Might finished up his instructions to them, subtly pointing in Bakugou’s direction.

“Stop pointing at me.” He grumbled, rolling his eyes.

The five to be sent in first for the rescue operation were Midoriya, Ashido, Sero, Ojiro and Tenya, who, like Midoriya, had received critical damage to his armor and it’s systems, and would need it repaired. Indeed, it was more of a show piece of help with functions relating to his Quirk. As Stain had demonstrated, blades could damage the armor quite easily.

The others had gathered outside to watch the screens display the race to All Might. Kirshima, Denki and Mineta sat among themselves, as Kirishima spoke up first.

“So who do you think’s getting first?” Kirishima asked. “It’s either Sero or Izuku. The Cellophane and Venom Quirks are perfect for this type of thing.”

“Don’t count Ojiro out.” Denki cautioned, as Kirishima and Mineta nodded.

“Deku will definitely come in last.” Bakugou grumbled behind them, glaring at the screen.

“Dude, no way, the tentacle things he makes are perfect for this.” Kirishima remarked, shaking his head. “Didn’t you him moving when you two fought.”

“Doesn’t mean shit.” Bakugou grumbled, shaking his head. ‘He wasted his time with a move star, that doesn’t prepare him at all for real hero work.’

Of course, he had also felt he had wasted his own time with Best Jeanist, but hey, he was at least better as a Hero then Deku. All his suit could was punch things. Anything they did, Bakugou could come out on top, no matter how much time he wasted with someone like Best Jeanist.

The five readied up, before the start sounded off. Sero was quick to react, firing off a Cellophane tape shot, latching onto one of the overhead pipes, and throwing himself into the sky. Mina slide across the ground with her acid, melting the ground beneath her slightly, and moving forward. At the same time, Izuku shot up from the ground as well, Venom’s tendrils lashing out and slamming into parts of the buildings and factory materials.

“See? I told you Izuku could do it.” Kirishima remarked to Bakugou, though he seemed surprised by how he was moving. “Though, was he always that agile?”

Indeed, Izuku was moving a little better then before. Venom had been very simple in his approach. He was a soldier and warrior within the hive, and blasting forward was how he usually handled things, moving from vantage point to vantage point to make quick escapes and gain a new point to attack from. It was obvious however, that his time with the Monster Hero Crew had improved how he and Izuku applied their Quirk and moved in the arena. No one could quite place it, but Bakugou saw it. His movements had changed all around.

‘What the hell did that stupid movie star teach him?’ Bakugou thought in shock. ‘How can he teach him anything, that guy doesn’t do real hero work!”

Izuku landed on a pipe running across it, as the others struggled to catch up. He felt pride well within him, as he continued on, for a moment, believing he could win this. He was so close now to winning it, when he slipped from the pipe he was running on, a slick of oil or grease along it, just long enough for him to almost fall to the ground below. Venom lashed out, sending a tendril into the side of a building, and swinging them both to it, climbing the side, but giving enough time for Sero to jump ahead.

Izuku did not come in last as Bakugou had hoped, but he was still not the winner. Sero stood proud in his victory, for once able to come out on top of the rest of his class, smiling proudly with the victory sash that All Might had given to the winner. Izuku took a deep breath, as the others smarted over the loss. While winning would’ve been nice, at least he and Venom had a new way to use their abilities. All Might seemed to reflect that attitude to the rest of the class.

“Sero may have won, but you’ve all figured out new and far better ways to use and apply your Quirks,” All Might said proudly to them. “Keep up that work, and hone your abilities for finals.”

As the others began to make their way back to the class, Izuku merely got to his foot from the seating position, and prepared to head out as well, before All Might walked by him, and whispered to him.

“You did a good job, as always Young Midoriya,” He whispered, not facing him at all, trying to hide any undue attention. “Come see me after class, there’s somethings we have to discuss, about both our Quirks.”

Izuku looked up briefly in surprise, but said nothing, nodding slightly, before quickly getting to his feet and running after his classmates. Whether it was about All Might’s injuries he was hiding, or Venom and the secrets related to them, Izuku couldn’t be sure, but if All Might wanted to speak with him, he wouldn’t be late.  
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Back at the locker rooms, Izuku and the rest were busy changing. Or they were, Izuku had Venom morph away, and then began removing his cloths. They had been under his costume, and were going to need to be washed from all the sweat he had built up. Once removed, Venom merely morphed himself into a black shirt and normal jeans. He was about to have Venom experiment with changing coloration and designs for the shirt, when Mineta called for his attention.

“Midoriya, look at this!” He whispered as loud as he could. “it’s the discovery of a century!”

Mineta pulled back one of the posters, as Izuku looked at him curiously, revealing a small peep hole. “It’s like in shawshank! And you all know what’s next door!”

“Dude, seriously?” Denki remarked, disgusted. He was willing to participate in some of his schemes, but this crossed a line he just didn’t at all feel comfortable with.

Most of the class felt the same, and Iida put them into words, chopping a hand at him. “Mineta, peeping is a major offense, and unbecoming of a Hero-in-training!”

“Oh come on, I want to see all of them!” He declared desperately, drooling, as he leaned against the wall, bringing himself closer and closer to the hole. “Yaoyoruzu’s boobs, Ashido’s body, Uraraka’s...”

Something shot out, and poked him in the eye. Mineta screamed in horror and agony, as Venom sprouted from Izuku’s shoulder, grinning wider then ever before. “Serves you right.”

He wanted to add that in some worlds, Mineta would’ve lost more then an eye, but simply stuck to gloating.

“Ouch, that was Jirou wasn’t it. Her ability to stealthy and precise. You really shouldn’t have.” Izuku said, as Mineta held his eye in pain.

“Do that again you little perv, and you’ll lose both eyes next time!” Jirou shouted from the other side of the wall.

After everyone had changed and got ready to leave, Izuku told Asui he had something with the teachers to take care of first, and to text him wherever they needed to meet, before Mineta was dragged off to Recovery Girl’s office to heal his eye, and, to receive the dew punishment for his antics. Izuku went off to the teacher’s lounge, where All Might had headed after the class concluded.

Izuku made his way to the doors, opening it a crack and stepping inside, seeing All Might in his thin form. Even after seeing it the first time, Izuku didn’t think he’d ever get used to seeing the greatest hero in Japan, and possibly the world, in such a fragile, frail state. He did not linger, stepping in, as All Might sat stoically on the couch, silent as can be. Even in this state, he left an intimidating presence for all that could see him.

“Go on, you can sit.” All Might finally said, as Izuku quickly moved and sat on the chair across from him.

“What is going on here? This doesn’t feel right.” Venom hissed in warning. Neither felt threatened, but this didn’t seem like it would be a fun visit, to say the least.

All Might looked up at him, his distant but determined eyes contrasting with his hollow, broken visage and appearance. Even without his muscle form, All Might was a man of great power, just not in the physical sense.

“You’ve got quite the reputation now, taking on the Hero Killer and all.” All Might remarked, studying Izuku intently.

“It was...a lot.” Izuku admitted, nervously tapping the tips of his fingers together. “He’s something else.”

“I know the feeling. He’s another one whose inspired some strong feelings in people. That Vigilante look alike for you, Jet Black did as well.” All Might explained. 

“Really? Like what?” Izuku asked, hoping Venom’s shenanigans hadn’t tainted his reputation too badly.

“The Protector of the weak and especially the poor and homeless. They called him The Vagrant King.” All Might remarked, He didn’t care for eating people’s heads, but if it gave the poor and forgotten something to latch onto for hope, he couldn’t exactly say no. “But I also wanted to talk about you. I know what went on there, can’t hide that from the Number One, so why did you rush in to save Iida?”

Izuku considered for a moment his words, not sure how to answer. “I know he needed help, so I ran in. Standing up to Stain, I can’t say why I kept fighting. Him and Native needed to be saved.”

All Might nodded, understanding. “I don’t plan on revealing anything that happened, to your teachers or others, just wanted to know more about the situation.”

“Okay then.” Izuku replied, trying to hide some of his nervousness. Was this an interview? It Felt like an interview. What should he say for this interview?

“You see, I’ve got a confession to make, this Quirk I have, One for All, it’s starting to fade out,” All Might explained. “or rather, burn out. I cant keep this up forever.”

Venom sprouted from Izuku’s body, wanting to partake in this conversation in full. “I knew it. Your losing your body.”

All Might nodded, before indicating the area of his chest where his wound was. “I’m on a limited schedule, so I gotta explain this real quick. One for All, is one of the oldest Quirks in existence.”

Izuku and Venom both fell silent, as he continued his story. “Long ago, a man with the power to take and transfer Quirks rose to power from the shadows, using his abilities to perform miracles and even cure diseases, afflictions and wrongs by giving and redistributing Quirks.”

“His Quirk was All for One, and he controlled most of the world in his prime. I won’t get into details, but he created One for All, and it’s been passed to each generation, gaining strength with time,” All Might continued. “I defeated him, or so I thought, left his face a bloody smear on the ground, and he gave me the wound you identified.”

“So, happy ending, right? Big Bad is dead, what’s there to worry about?” Venom asked, looking from the Number One Hero to his host.

“If he gave someone a Quirk they couldn’t handle, they’d be reduced to living dolls, mindless and unthinking, like the Nomu.” All Might explained. “Shigarki’s got too much power and reach for someone of his disposition, I think the Man I talked about is back, somehow.”

“It stands to reason, based on what you’re saying, he probably grabbed an immortality Quirk or something.” Izuku said, his voice starting to crack a bit from what he was hearing. This was yet one more secret that could break the world he was being included in. “What does that mean for you?”

“I want someone to take my place, but don’t get the wrong idea, I just want to test the waters,” All Might explained quickly. “I have a lot of candidates, and I don’t want you thinking your special or anything over your fellow students.”

“I don’t really.” Izuku muttered, too awestruck to think of anything else to say.

“Thing is, your Quirk is so similar to the other guy, and I’m worried things might get outta hand.” All Might explained, holding up a finger. “See, if it Power A could be rated 1, on a scale of 10, then One for All will make it a six in terms of power and strength. And who knows what it can do to Venom.”

“Understandable, wouldn’t want things to get too nuts.” Venom remarked, carefully playing along as the obedient Quirk, and not the flesh-eating parasite from space.

“Thank you both for understanding. I just want to monitor you, talk with you every so often, and see if you can be the next Symbol of Peace,” He said, before carefully added the last part. “In your own way at least.”

Izuku was absolutely speechless, for once, not even going into his muttering fits when something amazed him. He was silent for so long, Venom grew agitated, and thought of controlling his vocal cords to get him to speak, before the host finally spoke up. “I hope you’ll make the best choice you can All Might, you always have, so whatever happens, I’m with you.”

All Might smiled for a moment, before going serious again. “So Godzillo trained you? I’m surprised, he only takes a specific kind of Quirk use, and Venom isn’t really his style. I’ll be talking with him, and hopefully, we can help you reach your best, alright?”

Izuku nodded, as All Might gestured towards the door. “You can leave now kid, just keep this a secret, alright?”

Izuku nodded again, before heading off. He took a deep breath, not knowing how to react to all this news being thrown on his plate. ‘Just more secrets to keep.’

He wasn’t eager about this, but understood that, now that he had an alien parasite, or symbiote, with him, helping him become a Hero, he had thrown all hopes of a normal, quiet life out the window to achieve his dream. The goal now was just to survive everything that would be coming to him. His phone buzzed for a moment, as he took it out, and looked at the location Asui had texted him.

Time to see what was happening with her.  
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The shop they meet up at was a nice little corner place, that usually served coffee, but Izuku could detect the fresh smell of baked bread of all kinds wafting out of the windows, and all sorts of other sweet and relaxing aromas coming to him. Maybe it was the atmosphere of the place, maybe it was Venom enhancing his appetite to an extreme, but the place was already his favorite. Venom seemed to like it to, shifting within his body ever so slightly as they moved, giving Izuku a strange feeling all across his body as Venom shifted to and fro.

He caught sight of her in the corner, dressed still in her uniform, with a bagel in hand, as Izuku quickly moved to meet up with her. He took a seat across from her, as she stared back at him, finishing her small meal, and cleaning her hands.

“Thanks for this, I know it’s kinda spur the moment, but it seemed important.” She remarked, still seemingly nervous, as she shifted about.

“It’s good you did, I mean, if it’s something like Venom...” Izuku began, sitting down, before she held up a hand.

“Please, I consider you a friend, and I’ll be blunt with this,” She said interrupting him. “Is that really a Quirk? I saw this ‘Dreadface’ leave a villain’s body and move on it’s own, and it claimed to be related to you. I need to know what’s going on.”

Izuku considered backing out of this, or lying, but she knew something, and as Venom had said, it made her vulnerable to Kinzokumure and whatever this Dreadface was. Taking a deep breath, he nodded solemnly.

“Venom’s not a Quirk.” He said, quiet enough to let others overhear him. “He’s an alien Symbiotic organism from another world. He feeds on chemicals in my body and food, and gives me enhanced powers and healing. I was born Quirkless.”

Tsuyu said nothing, nodding for a moment, placing a finger on her mouth. “So, what about this Dreadface, he said he was prohibited from harming me. That I would be a host like you someday. What does that mean?”

Venom briefly sprouted from Izuku’s shoulder, staying small and close to the host for once, not wanting to draw attention. “I don’t know. My team, there were three others, are dead, and Dreadface isn’t any I recognize.”

“You’ve got a lot of people, right?” Tusyu asked, surprisingly able to accept all of this. “You really think you’d know everyone, Kero?”

“No, but we have a group mind, exchanging information and details, while maintaining independence.” Venom replied with a nod. “Dreadface is not any of my people, nor is the naming convention of something we follow.”

“Kero.” Tusyu remarked simply, her expression inscrutable. Izuku felt slightly uncomfortable, it was hard to tell what she was thinking.

After a moment he took a deep breath to steady himself, before speaking. “Listen, you can’t tell anyone, I...I don’t know if I’ll get kicked out or if this government group will experiment on me or something.”

“I didn’t intend to.” Tsu replied, sounding surprised at the idea. “It’s strange, but you are my friend, and you risked yourself to save me and Mineta and the rest. I don’t think I’d get you kicked out.”

He almost breathed a sigh of relief, before she concluded her statement.

“However, this is getting out of hand, don’t you think?” She asked blankly. “You’re dealing with things way too complicated for one person. Someone else has to know, a Hero, kero?”

“Godzillo, and his team know.” Izuku replied, rubbing the side of his face. 

“Be careful you two, with whatever you do,” She cautioned them both. “But are there any others on here that I should know about?”

“A government group has three of my kind hidden on an island for research.” Venom whispered. “I know the three, but I don’t know if they’re compatible with you.”

Tsuyu tapped her finger twice, not reacting at first, before speaking. “I don’t know if the future is set in stone or not, but I can’t say an alien symbiote is my thing. Kero kero. But please stay safe.”

“You too.” Izuku replied, as she stood up to leave, as Venom added to his words. “And keep an eye out for any others like me. My Empire sent only us, but if more are here, it could get dangerous.”

Tsu nodded, before heading for the door. The two watched her leave for a moment, as Izuku took a deep sigh of relief. It felt really good to finally share most of these secrets with someone else, but was left uncertain. She had promised not to tell, but Izuku couldn’t be too sure. Tsuyu was impossible to read. Even Venom found such a figure hard to tell what she could be thinking.

“Do you think our secret is safe, Deku?” Venom asked earnestly, seeming nervous as he was over this exchange.

“I don’t know. We’ll have to wait and see.” Izuku replied, before turning to his Symbiote. “Is prophecy part of your thing?”

“Esoteric powers are not in my skill set, or any Klyntar. Ancient monks and priests of Knull used to claim he would grant them visions, but that fell out of style under the Emperor and his Supreme Council.” Venom explained. “Knull is taboo.”

“So whose the one Tsu will get?” Izuku asked.

“Could be offspring, the three in Ogasawara, or” Venom said, before going back into his body, as they left the shop. “Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it as it comes, as we always do.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The night began to fall over the city, as deep within one of the high rise office buildings, a man sat in silence, watching numerous monitors, tubes and wires fitted all over his body. The Master of Puppets himself, who had been leading Shigaraki from the shadows all along. He sat back, thinking over everything that had transpired in the last week.

“The Hero Killer...I never thought he’d be caught. But he performed his role as expected.” The man remarked, leaning to the side as best he could. “Those who want to rampage, those who believe in his cause, whoever they are, will come to the League. It will be Tomura Shigaraki’s job to unify them.”

His doctor stepped behind him, the glow of the monitors the only thing in the darkened office. “So he is to unite the League? I wonder if the child can pull it off. No offense master, but things would go smoother if you were to approach them yourself.”

“Or you would finally let me have Tomura.” Riot growled from another corner of the lab, his corner smeared in fresh and new blood, as he licked his silver claws clean. “Or let me go after Venom before Kinzokumure.”

“Well, you had better fix my body doctor,” He replied with a bemused chuckle. “And you had best wait for Shigaraki. Our best chance against them is for them to not realize you exist until the best moment, understand Riot?”

“My Emperor and leaders will not like this.” Riot grumbled, shaking his head.

“They’ll understand.” Sensei replied knowingly, hiding a smile to himself from Riot.

“If only we got our hands on the Super Regeneration Quirk five years earlier. With your wounds healed, it’s practically useless, and the Symbiote is the only thing that could restore you.” The Doctor remarked.

“I like that idea.” Riot replied with a widened grin. All the better to conquer this world for the Imperium. All for One delicately placed a finger upon the screen with Tomura’s picture, already knowing his student would go far.

“No. I’ll leave all the heavy lifting and decisions to him. Even if I have to work the boy to the bone to get results.” All for One remarked, leaning his horrifically mangled head upon his hand. “See, he will become the next me, and with you combined with him Riot, both our goals can be achieved.”

“He’s too impulsive. He has the power to destroy, but other then that...” Riot remarked, shaking his head as he left the statement hang. His goals were the preservation of his kind and their spread across the stars, and the conquest of this world. To entrust that to Shigaraki left a foul taste in his mouth.

“I somewhat agree master. You and Kurogiri have been a touch too spoiling for him.” The Doctor said in agreement, privately wondering if he should agree with a flesh eating monster like Riot.

“That boy will rise to the occasion, I know it. He was born with the twisted heart to rule the underworld.” All for One declared, clicking a button as the screen switched to row upon row of tanks, containing the inert, unliving forms of Nomu, and above them, clear, pill-shaped cylinders, containing beings all too similar to Venom in appearance. “So enjoy this transient peace you’ve created All Might. It will come burning down!’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, another chapter all finished. Originally, I planned to have an agent try and kill Tsuyu for knowing too much about the Symbiote, and would be stopped by the Hero Version of Anguirus, who would recreate elements of the robbery scene from the movie, but decided it was too violent and dark, and was unneeded, and also added more plot elements when we have like 20 already. I also originally wanted a scene involving All for One killing two spies from the Church who were following Tomura, but that will probably show up later.
> 
> Riot is one element I hope to continue to develop as time goes on. In most fics, his personality is very much like the movie, which isn't bad, since he's just the brute and muscle of the Life Foundation/Mercury Team, but here I wanted to make him a good match up to Venom. I want to make him and Toga-Carnage good rivals to Izu-Venom going forward. Carnage usually gets all the attention as a villain, and I want things more balanced.


	24. Cut For Time: Innsmouth's Hiring

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A cut scene originally supposed to set up the Church of New Darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was originally set for Chapter 21, but made the plot too clustered, and didn't fit in Chapter 22, so I figured I'd just put it here.

Several Days earlier, when Internships began.  
The Smuggler and petty criminal Innsmouth was known well across the seas for stowing away, piracy, looting, and especially with smuggling contraband, ranging from drugs, alcohol and whatever else he was paid for. In his time, he had smuggled a few relics and such from warzones and more corrupt governments on behalf of everything from terrorists to scientists, but the figure before him was a strange one.

“So your name is…?” Innsmouth began, wanting to know more about the employer.

The man was Arabic, Innsmouth thought, a baseline human, even if he wore a heavy cloak and hood over his body, colored bronze, with a strange necklace around his neck, and a small, scruffy beard. Deep black scars were seared under his eyes, and across his arms appeared to be runic tattoos that looked Viking in origin. Of all of Innsmouth’s clients, this was the strangest.

“I am Kitab Al Hazred, I am Supreme Prophet of the Church of New Darkness.” The man answered, rubbing his beard a number of times. “I am in pursuit of some texts, and I merely need you to bring them to a contact in Japan.”

“Heroes have been touchy there lately, I’ll need some big pay.” Innsmouth remarked. “I ain’t risking my siblings without good pay.”

“The Church of New Darkness can supply whatever you need.” Al Hazred replied nonchalantly with a shrug. Innsmouth wondered where he had heard that name before, but ignored it. That answer could come later.

The employer held up a portable device, one of the holocommunicators normally used by Hero Academies, government agencies and heroes. He eyed him with suspicion, before Kitab shook his head.

“I am no Hero, we in the Church merely have high contacts, you see.” He answered, sliding it to him. “This device holds where the ship is, where to deliver it too, and how much you will get once you deliver, not counting the initial price, of course.”

“What am I delivering?” Innsmouth asked, still not trusting the man completely.

“Three stone tablets from Mongolia, dating back to the ruler Kublai Khan, written by Mongkeqara, Thrice-Cursed Heretic of the Blood Skies.” Hazred replied. “You must not read them. They will be hidden in a shipment of drugs. Deliver them, unopened form their box of drugs, to the Second group of Smugglers.”

“What then?” Innsmouth asked.

“They will carefully remove and transported the tablets and tomes, and you will sell the drugs to whatever villain or Yakuza group you desire.” Kitab replied coldly, not ever removing his eyes from Innsmouth’s own. “The drug money is 100% yours, you need not divide with us.”

Innsmouth nodded, tapping the tips of his tentacle-like fingers together. “Is that all then?”

A black slime suddenly shot out from under the table, overtaking Innsmouth. So horrified and terrified by what was happening, the squid-like figure didn’t even resist or struggle, the Symbiote bonding almost immediately. Kitab sat for a moment, watching this all happen with a cold, unfeeling gaze, before producing a set of cherries, chewing on them. Innsmouth arose, mere minutes later, his body now covered in the slimy bio-armor of the Symbiote Dreadface.

“Are you synthesized, Dreadface?” Kitab asked, sticking out his tongue to pluck the perfectly arranged cherry seeds from it.

“Synchronized, you mean? And yes, I have.” Dreadface replied, shifting his shoulders. “We are no different then you Klyntarii, so this will take a while to fully bond with his central nervous system.”

“Good, the operation does not start for a few days, so you have time.” Kitab said, before drawing a list of his cloak. “But we must ensure those who are foreseen by the other Prophets are not harmed until the Day of Knull.”

“Understandable.” Dreadface replied.

“I shall give you the list and their pictures, ensure that, if they appear as the Prophecies foresee, you do not harm them,” Kitab ordered sternly. “Return with the tomes and relics, and the Awakening shall come all the closer.”

Dreadface nodded, turning to leave the room, before Kitab called to him one last time.

“And nothing can trace back to us. Remove Innsmouth’s memories, and if need be, kill him,” Kitab stated, before adding a cold warning to the end. “And if you are captured, you will be killed yourself. The Hero Commission cannot find us. Not until the Awakening!”

Dread grunted, leaving the room, and heading back outside. Innsmouth would awaken many hours later, unsure of how he had gotten back to his hideout, or how he remembered the deal he had struck with Kitab, but paid it no heed. He had a job to do in a few days, and had to get all his ducks in a row to do it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like I said above, it didn't fit, added too much and made the stories clunky. There's really nothing in this that isn't in Chapters 21-22. But, if you want some extra scenes of Kitab/Zzzxx and Dreadface, there ya go. Be sure to comment if you have any critiques or questions. I miss engaging with you guys.


	25. Final Exam Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The biggest hurdle of Izuku and Venom approaches, as the final exams at UA begin.

By time the end of June came, the excitement for the Summer Camp promised by Aizawa had turned to anxiety for several of the students. While many were in a comfortable place academics wise and with their grades, many were not so happy with what was going down so far. Izuku had made it to the top three, thanks mostly to Venom perfectly memorizing whatever he missed, and sharing such information during any tests and midterms Aizawa gave out. Venom had said it wasn’t cheating, but Izuku wasn’t so sure about that.

Kaminari and Ashido were not so lucky. They were at the bottom of the barrel of the classes’ grades, and with the final exams coming up. Ashido could only muster nervous laughter over the situation, while Denki was left floored over the entire ordeal, not at all sure how to proceed.

“Everything that’s happened, the festival, the internships, I forgot to study.” He stammered, not able to believe he was about to fail.

“Everything Aizawa goes over is on the tests, how do you fail?” Todoroki asked, nonplussed by his classmates’ issues.

Both shuddered at his words as Mineta sat smugly back in his chair, grinning at them both with a smile of satisfaction. “Sucks I guess that we’ll have a practical exam too, huh?”

“How did you get so high?” Mina demanded, aboslutely shocked that Mineta of all people could score 9th in the class of all things. It was like a sick joke.

“Kaminari, Ashido, try your best guys,” Izuku encouraged them with a smile. “We should all be able to go, as a class!”

“It would suck if their braincells gave out at this moment in time.” Venom snorted within his mind, Izuku’s eye twitching ever so slightly at his insults.

“If you need help with the written exam,” Momo interjected. “Perhaps I can be of assistance.”

“Yaomomo!” They cheered.

Sero, Ojiro and Kyoka came to her as well, each with their own issues.

“Yeah, I’m not as bad as them, but Quadratic Formulas give me trouble.” Jirou remarked, rather nervously, showing her test papers. “I’d love to get some help.”

“So unsubtle. All of that to try and romance someone.” Venom muttered mentally, sounding disappointed heavily, as the others begged Momo for help.

‘What?’ Izuku said in confusion, not understanding what his Symbiote was saying.

“Jirou, she’s trying to get closer to her. I can see it in her body language, and speech patterns.” Venom remarked. “And plus, 60 Plus million years of experience lets me know romance, Straight or otherwise.”

‘But I don’t think either of them are lesbians.’ Izuku thought. Venom’s 60 million years was mostly brutally murdering people. Any romance had to be some weird Symbiote stuff.

“You willing to bet on that?” Venom dared, sounding as vengeful as he did when fighting an enemy that had spitted him. Izuku almost wanted to remark that he took setting people up as seriously as he did smashing through victims.

Izuku fell silent for a moment. ‘Let’s just wait and see.’

“I thought so.” Venom grumbled with a note of triumph and arrogance in his voice, before both looked to Bakugou and Kirishima. “And while we’re on the subject...”

“Y’know, that’s what virtue looks like.” Kirishima said in a mocking tone to Bakugou.

“You want virtue? I’ll tutor the shit outta ya.” Bakugou grumbled. “You’ll drop dead by time I’m done.”

“Thanks>”

“Midoriya, if I may speak for a moment.” Tokoyami said, interrupting his thoughts.

“Oh? Sure, what is it?” Izuku asked.

“There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask,” Tokoyami replied. “Our Quirks are similar, beings of Darkness and violence that are semi-independent. But yours is geared towards close combat and long range support, while mine is focused entirely on long-ranged combat.”

“Do you need help, by any chance?” Izuku replied, trying to keep his excitement in check. Getting to help someone perfect their Quirk was something he never got the chance to do.

“It’s just of the practical exam. I’ll catch up on the written stuff easy enough,” Tokoyami said quickly, as though trying to cover for himself. “I don’t want to be a bother.”

“Nonsense, ask Midoriya, Uraraka or I, and we would gladly help you!” Iida announced confidently. “You needn’t worry about being a ‘bother’ at all, when you’re our friend!”

Midoriya nodded in agreement, as he gave the thumbs up to Tokoyami. “Anything at all, you can ask us.”

Tokoyami nodded slightly, crossing his arms in front of himself.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
By time lunch came, Izuku was absolutely ravenous, a common occurrence with Venom and all, to the point he got a bigger lunch then the other students, thanks to the ‘medical impact on his metabolism’ from his Quirk. He sat back with his double portioned tray with the others, as the others talked around him.

“The academic work will draw upon what we’ve learned throughout the school year. I think that can be managed.” Izuku stated, as he and his friends prepared to eat. “But the practical exam? That’ll be scarier. We’ll have no idea what’s going to go down.”

“Speak for yourself, Deku.” Venom hissed from his shoulder. “It’s practical, combat abilities. We can just smash whatever gets in the way.”

“It might not be just smashing Venom, you should listen to your...Izuku more.” Iida corrected, most of the class not bothered by his appearance anymore. “But it shouldn’t be too unusual.”

“It’s probably just a comprehensive test of everything from the first semester.” Toruu added, mixing her rice about in the bowl.

“That’s all Aizawa has told us.” 

“There was battle training, rescue training,” Uraraka listed off. “And basic training, right?”

Izuku began to dig into his food, Venom’s Glasgow smile broadening further. “So ontop of academic work, we’ll also have to keep in top shape and...”

He was interrupted by a hit to the back of his head, Venom turning and growling at the offending party, as Izuku turned, rubbing the back of his head in surprise.

“Oh sorry.” The condescending voice of Monoma remarked, his smug grin the one thing that helped Izuku recognize him. “I had trouble getting my tray around that big head of yours.”

“Don’t be jealous, just because I’ll be removing yours.” Snarled Venom, as Izuku held up a hand to get his Symbiote to back off.

“I hear you guys ran into the Hero Killer, I guess the Sports Festival wasn’t enough, you guys keep hogging all the spotlight with stunt after stunt.” Monoma said, his voice growing more and more intense. “But now it’s looking like that attention isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”

He began to laugh. “It’s almost scary, I’m worried some us might get caught up in your antics and end up...Ack!”

Kendo chopped him in the neck, catching the tray before it could fall to the ground in the other hand. “That’s not funny Monoma. Haven’t you heard what happened to Iida?”

She turned, keeping a grip on the back of Monoma’s uniform, while setting his tray aside, Izuku glancing at it and swearing to himself it looked like he had a win glass for a drink instead of the usual milk and everything else the students got to choose form.

“Sorry, this guy, I think he was born with a twisted heart.” Kendo remarked, before turning, brushing her bright orange hair out of her eyes. “I overheard you guys talking about the practical exam. I know it might be cheating, but I heard from an upper classmen that these are usually robots, like in the entrance.”

“Not cheating at all, with that knowledge, we can prepare and modify our plans for what’s to come and...” Izuku began muttering off, as Kendo looked in slight surprise and worry over him.

“Kendo, you fool! This was our chance to get one over on the detestable Class-A!” Monoma complained, before she gave another chop to the back of his neck.

“Knock it off, there’s nothing detestable about them!” She grumbled, before dragging him back to his lunch seat.

Back in the classroom, Denki and Mina were of course relieved to be able to go all out against robotic opponents. Izuku wasn’t too concerned with whatever the teachers decided for them to face. He had to be ready for whatever came in the future. Everything that had happened had put a lot of heat under him to advance and get better, for he and Venom to get better at this.

‘The great evil that All Might spoke about, Kinzokumure and his agency having Venom’s kind in Ogasawara, the cult that Tsu fought.’ He thought over, a feeling of dread creeping over him. ‘We’ll prepare for everything, no matter what.’

“Humans or robots, who cares you bunch of morons?” Bakugou snapped, so quiet for once, everyone had almost forgotten he was there.

“Hey, don’t call me a moron, you moron!” Denki yelled defensively.

“I will, you can’t even regulate your own Quirk!” Bakugou snapped back, before turning to Izuku. “Deku!”

“Izuku snapped from his thoughts, as he sighed to himself. “Kaachan, can we do this another time?”

“No! You’ve been thinking you’re hot shit, with that gimp suit of yours.” Bakugou growled to him, jabbing a finger in his face. “So know this, when mid terms come, it ain’t gonna be like the Sports Festival. I’m gonna crush you. I’ll open the gap between us so wide, you’ll have no hope!”

“That hasn’t work so far has it?” Izuku muttered, rolling his eyes. “Like it or not, I’m gonna get to the top too.”

“You, and you Todoroki, I’ll leave you both behind!” Bakugou declared, turning and stomping out the class. He slammed the door shut behind, as a teacher next door yelled about the noise.

“I haven’t seen him that intense before.” Kirishima muttered in surprise, breaking the silence. “Is it nerves, or something else.”

Bakugou lumbered away down the halls, any other students, even upper classmen, wisely clearing away and moving out of his path, as he made his way through. Aizawa watched him from a corner of the halls, clipboard and papers in hand, slightly shaking his head. 

‘You’re going south faster then I thought Bakugou.’ He thought. He had seen very few students quite like him. If he was honest, none actually. ‘I’ll have to do as much as I can to start fixing that pride of yours.’  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
As the days slipped by, the various students divided into their study groups to try and get their skills sharpened up and prepared for the test to come. Bakugou had taken Kirishima to his house, and had, in his own way, prepared him for the tests to come. Mostly by beating him over the head to emphasis the lessons, but he was good at inspiring other ways, though preferred beatings.

Meanwhile, the group that had assigned themselves to study under Momo were greeted to a luxurious estate, full gates, Grecian Columns and fine fireplace in the living room, or, hall, and breath-taking statues. And that was just the beginning of the mansion. As they got further in the sights were breathing, the fresh smell of cinnamon in the halls, never vanishing wherever they went, as the “dining room”, was a large hall that could comfortably seat all of them.

“This amount of money is...like, really out there.” Denki remarked, looking around in wonder, as Mina even looked closely at the silverware.

“Tell me about it. Even my parents can’t get stuff like this.” Jirou replied, back awestruck at everything around her. Turns out being Rock Stars in Japan couldn’t buy everything.

Momo rolled in with a cart of tea and various tea flavors and brands for them to sample and enjoy for themselves. She beamed from ear to ear, as the others turned to see her, smiling and cheering at her return, setting aside their books and papers to enjoy her tea on a break.

“I brought three flavors for everyone, so don’t be afraid to sample whichever ones you want.” Momo announced happily.

“Yaomomo! Yaomomo!” The students cheered and chanted for her.

She brought the cart around, and stopped it by their desks, beginning to pour out and hand out tea cups, and listening closely to all her classmates’ quickly yelled requests and excited voice, carefully balancing each and every glass with amount of tea they received like a seasoned pro, each bearing the exact same amount as the other, despite the excitement and energy in the room.

Though it would take many more hours to finish up, especially with how difficult it was for Denki and Mina to grasp the subjects at hand, they finally finished up their study session for the day, the group cleaning up and helping put away the used cups. As the clean-up finished off, the study group filtered out, until only Kyoka and Momo remained.

“Hey, I just wanted to thank you for helping me out with math and all.” Jirou said, as Momo organized everything.

“Oh, thank you, it was no trouble at all,” Momo said cheerfully, before her mood seemed to shift slightly, her turning away.

Jirou looked on in worry, twirling her earphone jack slightly, as she approached Momo. “Hey, uh, is the whole thing with the sport’s festival still bothering you?”

Momo sighed, beginning to push the cart back into her family’s kitchen, as Jirou followed along. “That, and internships were...less the desirable.”

Jirou understood immediately what was up. If Yaomomo could help her, she would try her best to return the favor. “I get it. Things haven’t rolled out well, but hey, you helped me, so let me help you. We just gotta give you a new direction and attitude for the tests, kay? How about I come by tomorrow?”

“You don’t need to do that.” Momo replied, holding up a hand to try and stop her friend.

“Hey, it’s what friends for, alright?” Jirou replied, as they stopped in front of the kitchen, standing awkwardly for a moment. She wasn’t sure what to say now. Fiddling with her Earphones again, Jirou gestured with her thumb behind her. “So I gotta like, go soon. I’ll see ya back at school. Thanks for everything.”

“No trouble at all.” Momo said with a warm smile. “Ill see you tomorrow.”

Meanwhile, on the other side of Japan, Izuku and Tokoyami had taken over part of the beach to begin their own training methods. As Tokoyami had insisted so many times, he didn’t want an academic review, but to sharp up on an ability he had been thinking about for a long time. The two stood, as the sun began to dip below the waters, casting a soft, lambent orange glow upon everything.

“What do you need to work on Tokoyami?” Izuku asked, as they stretched and began to prepare for training.

Tokoyami seem to mull over his words for a moment, before bringing Dark Shadow out. “Our Quirks are similar in way, shadowy figures that manifest from parts of our body and assist us. But what’s bothered me is your Venom’s abilities to manifest abilities for long range and short range combat.”

“We are different in terms of ability.” Venom pointed out, having sprouted from Izuku’s shoulder.

“But similar enough.” Tokoyami pointed out, tapping a finger against his beaked chin. “I want to try a new technique.”

“Alright Tokoyami, let’s try it out!” Izuku said cheerfully, smiling eagerly. Truth be told, he had always loved having Tokoyami as among his close friends, due to their similar powers, even if the origins were not exactly the same. 

Venom bulked up and wrapped around his body, his body going from the deceptively thin, average frame, to the muscular, powerhouse body Venom had, fangs and claws extending out. Dark Shadow burst to life from Tokoyami’s black jacket, it’s own hands stretching and flexing, preparing for the exercise.

Tokoyami nodded to Izuku and Venom. “Alright, let me try this.”

He tried to settle Black Shadow over his own body, ethereal claws settling over his hands, Black Shadow’s energy-based form covering his back, shoulders and head. The black energy blazed around his form, like a raging fire over his humanoid frame, as Venom looked on, impressed to say the least. He was not an expert on Quirks, but how so many of Izuku’s friends and allies were able to apply them in new ways continued to impress him. He wondered how his body and abilities would be effected by the presence of a Quirk in his host’s genetic matrix, before focusing on the task at hand, training an ally.

“Tokoyami, can you move?” Venom asked, holding out a hand before him. It could look cool as he wanted, but thousands of years of combat experience told him the practicality beat looks in almost everything.

Tokoyami walked forward two steps, before looking up at Venom, his eyes glowing yellow form Dark Shadow’s own eyes. “Let’s see how much I can handle in this form.”

Tokoyami stepped forward, with more intent and purpose behind his moves, before Dark Shadow shifted and ‘fell’ from his body slightly, before righting itself. He stopped, trying to move his right hand in front of his face, Dark Shadow following a split second after his movements. He narrowed his eyes in disappointment and annoyance.

“How do you do this, Midoriya?” Tokoyami asked, studying his small movement alongside Dark Shadow’s own. “Your insight would be most valuable.”

Izuku thought for a moment on how to proceed. He wasn’t exactly sure if, on a practical level, their abilities cold be compared. Venom almost was going to speak for him, before he did so himself. “I’ve been using Venom as a suit most of my life, since middle school, and his tentacles after that. I guess it’s like walking for me.”

“I see. I’ll need to crawl first, before I can walk, as they say.” Tokoyami said with a nod, closing his fists tightly, Dark Shadow still following only a second later. To not have such control over his Quirk was embarrassing. He almost wanted to withdraw away, and go back to his abode, but remembered he had contacted Izuku, and did not wish to insult him.

“It took us a long time to become so coordinated.” Venom remarked, trying to soften his usual booming voice. “If you don’t succeed at first, more practice and work can help sharpen your skills.”

“Right. Thank you for this.” Tokoyami remarked.

The practice would continue for a few more hours, mostly focused on Tokoyami getting used to moving with his own Quirk laid over his body, barely learning to fight with it. Still, the inroads he made where quick and impressive, and Vvenom remained quite fascinated with his power. As the two left for home, going their separate ways, Venom could not help but marvel at his power still.

“Interesting ability, so similar to the bond between Klyntar and Host.” Venom remarked as they walked down the streets.

“What are you thinking Venom?” Izuku asked, sensing his statement was just a hook for further conversation.

“When we bond, Klyntar take the powers of their hosts through genetic interfacing,” Venom explained nonchalantly. “It’s through that, that we evolve and develop new features, and pass them onto our children. And each other when duels are lost.”

“So you’re probably thinking what would happen if you bonded with Tokoyami?” Izuku ventured, which now that they were talking about, was a fascinating idea. “How would you manifest a Quirk actually?”

“I know some of my kind would probably, for example, just take the fire and ice creating abilities of Todoroki, or their humanoid form would alter to accept mutation like Tsu’s.” Venom explained. “Still, such almost tempts me to latch onto a few and copy what I can.”

“Why don’t you?”

“I’d have to bond for two days, leaving you without me, and opening more to our little secret,” Venom replied. “And I am not leaving you alone and vulnerable.”

Izuku was almost touched by Venom’s protectiveness, but was bothered more by the tone in his final statement. It sounded less protective then what he would’ve liked, and more possessive. He was certain if things had been slightly different, Venom wouldn’t want to leave him. Izuku could only believe that Venom was acting like this to keep him from being captured by Kinzokumure and his goons.

“We need each other, don’t forget.” Venom hissed slightly, before his tone softened slightly. “Without one, the other would fail.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The last few days were a jumbled mess of practice, study and preparation, several spending their days with Momo to sharpen their knowledge, or in Tokoyami’s case, bouncing from Izuku, to Iida and even Ochako to help sharpen up his skills. He had never wanted to admit it, but he was grateful they had, despite his protests, inserted themselves into his study program to get him ready. Though he would never say it out loud, partially from awkwardness, partially from pride, he was ever grateful to them.

The day of the test was hushed to silence, not by Aizawa’s orders or steely stare, but simply because of the nervous energy bubbling in all of them. By time the hour rang and was over, everyone had managed to turn in their papers, everyone seemingly satisfied. With all said and done, the class gathered around in small pockets, with Momo getting the lion’s share of attention.

“I’m pretty sure I passed!” Mina said excitedly, grinning from ear to ear.

“I didn’t leave any blanks!” Denki said pridefully.

Venom, had, again, insisted on using his advanced memory to give Izuku the answers. It didn’t feel right, but tuning him out wasn’t exactly easy with the alien creature constantly in his head, and then throwing a fit when ignored. The symbiote squirmed happily within his body, like an energetic puppy.

“Now all that’s left is to shred the machines.” Venom hissed in his head in excitement. “Hopefully it goes better this time.”

And so, after the tests were turned in to be graded and scored by the machines, the class, in their hero costumes, were sent to the outside the school, in the back loot with the busses. Excitement and nervous energy again filled the air, this time made worse by the fact their performance was going to be judged now. Still, with machines being their main adversaries, a lot of the stress was taken off. After all, nothing would be easier then shredding robots like paper. They stood in front of the buses, standing before the very large crowd of teachers assembled with them.

Everyone arrived fully costumed, Izuku having Venom switch from street cloths to a replica of their costume, as they walked up to the buses. The first thing to catch their attention of course where the number of teachers. Eight of them to be exact. Jirou was the first to note their numbers, but almost everyone could tell something was up.

“It is possible to fail this exam. If you want to attend the training camp, don’t screw this up.” Aizawa said, walking past the other teachers and to the front. “No doubt, you all asked around and think you have a vague idea of what’s going to happen next.”

Izuku didn’t like how he phrased at all. That might they had changed their plans, but to want exactly? What did it entail?

“It’s robots right? It’s totally robots!” Denki said excitedly, as he and Mina pumped themselves up. Izuku and several others wanted to tell them not to get their hopes up, but someone else spoke for them.

“Not quite!” Nezu declared, the principal jumping from within Aizawa’s scarf. Even Venom, with his enhance senses, wasn’t able to pick up on him. “Due to some circumstances, things have had to change!”

Denki and Mina froze, as everyone’s attention was now entirely focused on Nezu, who climbed down from Aizawa’s scarf and shoulders and onto the ground. It had been decided the week before the final exams, in an after school meeting between the teachers. There was too much at risk for simple robots for this training. Something more had to be done.

“See, due to recent concerns, we decided something more intense, to counter any potential ‘villain revivals’. As such, your training will now replicate real combat as much as possible,” Nezu explained. “And for that to work, you need to put against flesh and blood opponents going forward.”

“This is booooring. Can we start fighting or what?” Venom mumbled, as the teachers went on.

“For the purpose of this exam, you’ll be paired off against one of the teachers you see here.” Nezu stated, gesturing to the assorted teachers. Some of the top level professionals in teaching and heroics work, about to go up against students.

It took the energy and fire out of a lot of them, and even Izuku was weary at the idea. Venom was eager to fight, and had the strength and ferocity to back it up, but they had never fought pros. Stain was the closest to that, and they had two other students. Here, was going to be harder, and if he or Venom acted on a violent impulse like that had been happening recently….

“The pairings were decided before you arrived. Based on your technical and battle skills, your friendships and how well you sync together, have decided what will happen.” Aizawa stated, as he drew his scarf up, giving his usual chesire cat grin. “First up, will be Yaoyoruzu and Todoroki, against me.”

It seemed balanced. Two high powered Quirk users going against a guy with the flexibility and speed to out-maneuver, and the ability to neutralize their power.

“Perfectly balanced.” Venom noted, as Aizawa looked to him and Bakugou. Izuku felt his hairs stand on end. Even without being angered or using his Quirk, Aizawa’s stare could silence and stop anyone from even thinking of moving against him. 

“Midoirya will be with Bakugou.” Aizawa stated, as the two looked at each other in surprise. They couldn’t even begin to say something, before a muscled titan rose from behind the other teachers.

“Your opponent will be me.” All Might declared, pointing to himself with his usual confident grin, looming over the crowd like an Olympian God. “Your only way of winning, is for you two to work together and give it all you got.”

Venom was silent for once, stewing in his agitation and anger at the development. Izuku and he could probably take All Might, if they worked fasted and hit hard. Any trusted friend, like Tokoyami, Uraraka, Tenya and even Tsu, and they could do even better. But Katsuki, the one his host admired for reasons Venom could hardly comprehend, was impossible, intolerable.

For the sake of his host, Venom would do what he had to, and suck it up. Aizawa listed off the other pairings and who they would be facing. Largely irrelevant to Venom and his host. What was most important, was if they could beat All Might. If nothing else, it would be a good test of Venom’s battle skills, against a worthy opponent.

“We’ll be heading out simultaneously to each Training zone for this, so be ready.” Aizawa finished, pointing to the buses behind them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this one took a bit. I was reading through some old Lethal Protector issues, Donny Cates' Venom, and Scream CoC to get the right mood, as well as dealing with side projects and such. So I went in preparing set up for the tests, including some of the characters. Having Tokoyami and Izuku became tighter friends seemed natural, but I'm also giving spotlight to Jirou, cause I plan to get her a Symbiote as well. But, piece by piece. I don't want to rush into it too much, and start adding characters and plot points outta control.
> 
> Also, I gotta say, the latest Venom issue kinda disappointed me. I was hoping Virus would be...someone else. The guy they choose is old hat. I might work in the armor and character design though.


	26. Final Exam Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Venom might very well have met his match against the Greatest Hero.

“I’ll take on Yaoyoruzu and Todoroki. One’s too headstrong, and the other has confidence issues,” Aizawa explained as their meeting wrapped up. “Erasing their quirks and forcing them to think will hopefully remedy the issue.”

His face half hidden in his scarf, he gave a weary, half-lidded gaze to All Might. “I’ll be placing Bakugou and Midoriya under your watch. It’s not grades or Quirks. In fact, they might be incompatible given Midoriya’s aversion to noise and fire, but their temperament towards each other. I know you’ve had your eye on Midoriya, but make sure you guide both of them properly.”

All Might nodded solemnly. Ever since that day when Izuku had escaped the Sludge villain, and ever since then, had been impressing him with his heroism and tenacity. A quirk that gave such a young man the strength, ferocity and durability he lacked otherwise was almost too perfect. Bakugou meanwhile had all the ferocity and pugnacious determination, but none of the nuance or understanding that was just as important.

Helping them both would be the mission going forward. If Midoriya truly was to be the successor, and Bakugou was to be a top-level hero in his own way, All Might would have to get them to look past their biases. This would be a challenge.

All Might was many things, as teaching went, on the smaller, more important aspects, the little things, he wasn’t sure he was quite on the level of Aizawa. He’d have to try.

On the drive over to the practice field, All Might sat in front, tapping his fingers against his knees, before turning to the two. “So, how about a word game or…?”

He was stopped mid-sentence by the sight before him. Midoriya was rod stiff, sitting starring straight ahead with a stricken expression, as Bakugou had chosen a seat way in the back, as far away from him as he could get. 

Getting them to work together would be a challenge. 

“Can you lighten up for a moment?” Venom hissed, irritated as always. “We need to be relaxed and ready to go. Have a plan.”

‘I’m sorry but All Might is impossible to beat!’ Midoriya thought in a panic. ‘Think for a second. If we struggled to beat Nomu, how much trouble will he give us.’

Venom shifted back for a moment, thinking it over. That Nomu was designed and engineered to kill All Might, and they had struggled against it. Going against the real thing would be worse and more damaging. Venom was an eager warrior, someone who had thrown himself into the fray and fought countless enemies across his home galaxy and this one. Very few species could equal his own with the right host.

These Nomu, and All Might would be something else all together. 

Venom growled in agitation to himself, before grunting. “Fine, then we retreat, but not without trying to slow him down.”

‘Just don’t try and slug it out with him in a slug match.’ Midoriya commanded ruefully. He knew Venom all too well that ‘slow him down’ meet something else entirely.

“Fine.” Venom grunted. He hated the word retreat. It meant he wasn’t strong enough, that something could overtake and kill him. He wanted to tear through his foes and leave nothing but broken corpses and shattered bones.

But Izuku needed him to be more then a weapon. And he would do anything to ensure his host became the hero he was meant to be.

After a long drive out to the facilities, the three finally disembarked, making their way to the frontgates. This was a site similar to the one at the school, but larger and more intensive. Here, students can get far more intense training for their Quirks in urban settings then the more basic Site where most training took place. Strong walls surrounded the place, that would be difficult to climb, and sensors and cameras dotted the area in overlapping fields of view. Within it, were scores of buildings, built in mockery of a city, beyond it, forests from as far as the eye could see.

Venom morphed out of Izuku’s shoulder, looking over the place with an expecting eye. “So are we to fight through this whole thing?”

“More or less. Either subdue me, or get these shackles around my wrists.” All Might said nonchalantly, producing the pair of shackles in question. “Though the option to retreat is always there. You can simply take yourselves and make it through the gate on the other side.”

“So run and win, or fight and win?” Izuku stated, already planning out a way to circumvent All Might.

“To make it easier, we have these special weights, that add 50% our body weight to us to slow us down further,” All Might explained, clicking on the special weights to his ankles, and then his wrist, before his right arm dropped suddenly. He grunted in surprise. “Jeez, who made them this heavy.”

“Hmm, bringing yourself down to make it ‘fairer’, how pathetic.” Bakugou remarked coldly, not sounding as interested or passionate as he usually did. He seemed to be somewhere else, mentally, thinking perhaps of the coming fight, or what he would do. Venom watched out the corner of his eye wearily.

“Well, we’ll have to see, won’t we Young Bakugou.” All Might remarked in a reserved manner, not sure he liked where his student was going. If Bakugou rushed ahead in a case like this, he was bound to get himself and Young Midoriya hurt. “Give me some time to set up, and then you’ll get the signal to come in and prepare, understand?”

The two nodded, as All Might tested his wrists, arms and legs to make sure he was adjusted to the weight, before turning back to them. “Any questions?”

They both shook their heads, as the gates opened, and All Might headed inside. Izuku looked to Bakugou, who, without even glancing at him, headed inside with a grunt, stomping his way forward, ready to fight the Number 1 Hero. 

Izuku ran forward, Venom looking after Bakugou as he headed into the city, before turning to his master. “So, what’s the plan?”

“I need to get to Bakugou before we plan that out.” Izuku answered, getting into a run, and finally catching up with Bakugou, running alongside him, as the Explosion user walked along, barley acknowledging him with nothing but a grunt. “Kaachan, we need to remember All Might’s the villain, we’re the heroes, so we should remember that and develop a plan.”

Bakugou growled to himself, pushing ahead to try and get away from Izuku. “Kaachan, wait!”

“Stop talking to me!” Bakugou snapped, barley hiding his contempt.

Venom shifted back into Izuku’s body, not wanting to be part of this. Bakugou was a hot-headed idiot. Let him burn himself, while he and Izuku pushed ahead and won the prize for themselves.

“If we keep going, we’re going to end up running right into All Might!” Izuku warned, looking after his ‘friend’ desperately, wishing he would listen for once. 

“So what? Winning a fight is worth far more then just running.” Bakugou barked back. Venom couldn’t find a flaw in that idea, but he was trying to think this out, Bakugou was just thinking with his pride and desire to destroy anything. That realization made him lurch within Izuku for a moment. 

Venom had always placed his strength as his greatest asset, had recently been pushing Izuku to fight and kill with impunity as a vigilante, becoming a creature of total misery and butchery for those that opposed them.

‘Is Bakugou a reflection, or warning?’ Venom thought for a moment, before focusing in the present. He did not wish to get involved. It wasn’t saying much, but Izuku was much better suited to talking with Bakugou.

“You can’t be serious? Fighting All Might?!” Izuku sputtered in disbelief, wondering if his friend was suicidal.

“We’ll just toy with him through out the fight, and I’ll beat when he gets tired out!” Bakugou declared, keeping his gaze focused ahead.

‘I wish he would just listen for once...’ Izuku thought, shaking his head, before picking up the pace and chasing after him.

“Let him. Hopefully, he’ll die or something.” Venom grunted within his mind in agitation.

‘No, we have to work with him!’ Izuku thought, before reaching him. “Do you know who All Might is? There’s no way we can win, even with his handicap…!”

He hardly had the words out, before Bakugou had swung his Grenadier Gauntlet right behind, striking the back of the device into Izuku’s nose, breaking it, and throwing him to the ground. Venom quickly fixed it before blood could escape, as Bakugou glared down at him with a murderous glare that froze Izuku’s blood.

“Don’t say a word.” He hissed. “You’ve been looking down on me this whole time, you and your fucking gimp suit. Just because you finally got a Quirk, you useless shit, doesn’t mean I have to listen to you.”

Venom enveloped his frame, standing over Bakugou, who glared at him without a hint of fear, their eyes both enraged and locked, Venom baring his fangs, the two glaring each other down.

“I have had enough of this.” Venom growled finally, clenching his clawed hands into fists. “Ever since you were children, you have degraded, spat upon and bullied my host, for reasons beyond my understanding, and he still admires you in spite of this, again, for reasons I fail to get!”

He stood over Bakugou, droll spilling from his fangs, his long tongue lapping out, as the two stared each other down. “I have held back, but now I am going to deal with you fully, like the insect you are and…!”

As they had argued and bickered, All Might stood in front of the exit, waiting several minutes, before lifting his arms up, muscles bulging and straining under his costume, as the weights clicked ever so slightly. He grinned to himself, fists tightening, as energy sparked off his arms and body.

“Now, here I go!” He declared, more to himself then anyone present, before lashing out, punching in front of him, towards the frontgates where they had arrived, where he had walked down to get here.

A gust of wind, strong enough to be considered a small hurricane, blasted forth from his wrists, the sheer winds blowing forward with such force, that signs and cars were sent flying off, the sides of the building, siding and other outer layers peeled off with such force, that if one could wtihstand the force of the winds, would’ve been pulverized by even the smallest flying object from the force of the punch.

Bakugou was sent flying back immediately once the winds reached the two, as Venom burrowed his clawed hands and feet, rooting himself in and keeping him and hist host stable. He was almost grateful for the interruption between the two. He was worried he was about to lash out and do something to Bakugou Izuku would never forgive him for.

Bakugou stood, shaking off his confusion and daze, as Venom tore himself free of the streets, flexing his claws, as he growled at the approaching figure of All Might. 

“Who cares how much damage is done to the city?” All Might declared in a mocking tone, his smile, for once, not inspiring the hope and joy it had before. Now, they felt a nameless fear driven into their hearts. “You two better give me everything you’ve got.”

‘What is this…?’ Izuku thought, despite Venom trying to push him to keep his head up and focus. If they let the fear of All Might cloud anything else, they’d never even move.

‘This feeling?’ Bakugou thought at the same time, both suddenly realizing that, even with their expectations, facing All Might was going to be a lot harder then what Izuku had thought.

Bakugou was the first to snap out of the feeling of utter terror in his heart. He had sworn to himself he would win, and he was going to do it no matter what it took. With a yell at the top of his lungs, he lunged forward, using his explosions to get airborne. Venom narrowed his left eye, a way for him to cock his eyebrow, given Symbiotes tended to lack those, as Bakugou raised his hand to attack.

“You keep telling us to give it our all? I never had any other intention!” Bakugou yelled at the Number One, completely devoid of fear, before lifting up one of his gauntlets and releasing the pin, a bright flash of energy directed out.

Venom was sensitive to high heat, and even he knew it was just the equivalent of a Flashbang, blinding All Might for a few seconds, as Bakugou lunged forward, both hands ready to go, before All Might lashed out with his hand. He had been blinded by explosions, light and other attacks in his day, and what Bakugou was doing was nothing new to him. His mighty hand almost covered all of Bakugou’s face, as the Explosion user fruitlessly yelled, muffled and covered, before unleashing a barrage of explosions from his palms at All Might’s chest and face.

“Ow ow ow ow ow ow!” All Might managed, feeling every explosion. They were like bee stings. It wasn’t going to stop a grown man, or a figure of All Might’s constitution, but they still stung. ‘He’s not even trying to remove my hand. What a temper!’

He grabbed the left, and spun on his foot, tossing Bakugou over his hip and slamming him into the ground with another force to send dirt and debris up into the air, and leave Bakugou stunned, gasping for breath, as All Might released his grip.

“And now, for you young Midoriya.” All Might declared, bolting out of sight, before appearing behind Venom. “Don’t think I’ll take it easy on you.”

Venom narrowed it’s eyes, lashing out with it’s right fist, All Might moving in an instant to block the strike, only for Venom to drop the punch and swing a left uppercut straight at All Might’s chin. Midoriya was silent for once, his memories flashing back to the Hero Killer in Hosu, Venom doing all the work to protect them. The Number One grunted in pain and surprise, before Venom released a flurry of punches towards his chest, each blow timed and coordinated to maximize damage. He may have been stunned by the attack, but he was by no means defenseless, bringing his arms up, even as he backpeddled, and blocking every blow, ducking his head to avoid taking any injuries to the face, before Venom swiped with his leg, knocking him over. All Might just accepted the fall, as Venom started forward, his patient, well-timed attacks dying away into his over-excitement to finish the fight.

All Might lashed out with his right leg, slamming into Venom’s low jaw and knocking his head back with a crack, sending Izuku falling back, as All Might the ground in a well-practiced break fall and jumped back to his feet. Venom stood, shaking off his injuries, snapping his lower jaw back into place, as the holes made from biting his own tongue in several areas sealed themselves up. He prepared to go at it again, before deciding to jump back and away, to retreat and get his bearings.

“Hey move!” Bakugou shouted, flying in behind him.

Venom reacted immediately, sending a tentacle of flesh from one arm, latching onto the side of a building, and pulling away, before sending another to wrap around Bakugou’s chest, and pull him away, Venom jumping several yards away from All Might and landing, as Katsuki yelled and cursed and swore at him the whole time.

“Bakugou, we cannot win this, give it up!” Venom growled. “Even we don’t have the strength to match him.”

“Don’t touch me! Don’t talk to me!” Bakugou growled, keeping his head low, glaring at All Might from the top of his eyes. “I’ll win damnit. I’ll always win! That’s what heroes are supposed to be!”

Izuku flashed back to when they were kids, when they were actual friends, when they both admired All Might. It was then that Izuku was reminded of what he used to admire about Bakugou, when they could be called friends. They both looked up to All Might. They both sought to be like him. Why did things have to change? 

Even after getting a Quirk, Bakugou was still obsessed with proving himself over Izuku, but why? Why even now was this obsession pushing him. Venom himself peered through these memories impressed by Bakugou’s strength as a child and his will and drive. He still felt the young brat didn’t deserve the respect Deku had piled on him, but that was not all. He really could feel something like a connection to Bakugou. Fighting and seeking to conquer and dominate any challenge was natural for most Symbiotes, even those outside of Venom’s Caste.

‘Such ferocity, such will, he would make a good host,’ Venom thought watching him try to rush forward to attack again. ‘He would make a good Klyntar, come to think of it.’

Venom was the one to speak this time, not Midoriya, but for once, said what his host wanted him to. “Your zeal is admirable, but you have a knack for finding weakness in your foes don’t you? Can’t you see, All Might has no weakness now?”

Venom pulled back, Midoriya’s face hitting the air as he looked at his childhood friend and rival, his eyes the swirling black and flicks of white like Venom’s body. “Kaachan, think about it, we…!”

“Here’s a gift for the one who can’t decide to fight or flee!” All Might yelled, both turning to see All Might sailing over the buildings in a single leap, before smashing down onto Venom’s back feet-first, smashing into the ground with such force it left a humanoid-shaped crater, before running to Bakugou. “And for the one who just fights!”

He swung a power upper cut with sound barrier-breaking speed, and slammed into Bakugou’s stomach, sending flying a block away, and causing him to lose whatever food he had eaten earlier from his mouth. He sat in the ground, stunned for several minutes, as All Might approached. Venom himself rose slowly, shaking himself off, before stepping from the crater that bore his likeness, then staggering and falling to one knee.

“Venom! What’s going on, are you alright?” Izuku yelled to him within, the Symbiote shaking his head for a moment to try and clear it.

“No, I’ve never been that hard...not in a long time...” Venom hissed, shaking his head once more to clear his vision, before receding into Izuku’s body. “Like me check your insides. Something might be off.”

All Might had walked over to the still stunned and dazed Bakugou, as Izuku waited for Venom to heal or recover from whatever injuries they both had, watching as the Number One simply stepped behind the Explosion User.

“While Young Midoriya’s Venom Quirk is something quite impressive, I don’t understand your disdain for him,” All Might stated calmly, walking behind him. “You both have impressive Quirks. Some of the best. You could both benefit from learning and improving each other.”

Bakugou stood, his ears still ringing, his head feeling like it would explode itself, his eyes half-open. “If I have to rely on him, I’d rather lose.” 

Izuku looked up, eyes going wide with shock at what he had just heard. Venom already knew what he was thinking. “I can’t go all out, your shoulder blades and rotatory cups are damaged.”

“Then just give me part of your power damn it!” Izuku whispered to his Symbiote, not blinking.

All Might’s gaze softened slightly, as he shook his head. Even when faced with loses like this, Bakugou refused to let go of his foolish pride and ambitions. “I’m sorry, but if that’s what you want, then I hope you have no regrets.”

All Might pulled back his right, tightening it into a fist, and preparing to give Bakugou a strong knock out hit to the side of the head. Enough to just keep him down for a bit, and hopefully not do any permanent damage. All Might hoped this would be enough to teach him the value of relying on others at least. He wordlessly pulled back, ready to deliver the finishing blow, when Izuku jumped in front of him, slamming a blackened fist into Bakugou’s face, All Might taken by surprise for a moment, as Izuku produced a tentacle from his other hand, wrapped around Bakugou, and jumped away, all without saying a word.

The two disappeared down one of the alleys, as All Might recovered from his own shock, blinking in surprise. “I forgot about Midoriya. I thought he’d be down and out from his injury.”

He lifted a hand to scratch the side of his neck for a moment. “Man, these things are heavy.”

Izuku transformed his feet into the blackened clawed versions of human feet Venom had, before smashing his way onto the wall, running upwards with Bakugou on his shoulder, using the tentacles to balance and keep himself firmly on the wall, before jumping and landing on the top one of the taller building, and letting Bakugou go. The other teen stepped away, feeling heat rise to his face, fists clenching.

“Why the hell did you do that?” Bakugou yelled, his eyes wide with rage. He had wanted to lose, and yet even that wasn’t possible with this nerd getting in the way.

“Don’t say you’d rather lose, ever!” Izuku yelled back, standing up and rolling his shoulders, as Venom’s parts disappeared from view and into his body. “That’s...that’s just not you, alright?”

Bakugou said nothing, breathing hard and glaring daggers at him the whole time, as Izuku sighed and shook his head. “Venom doesn’t have the strength to match him. Maybe the durability and speed, but All Might is too strong for me alone.”

“And what am I supposed to do then?” Bakugou demanded, glaring at Izuku. “Venom’s always the one talking about how you’ll surpass me, and now you want me to help, piss off!”

Izuku transformed into Venom once more, his frame more like Izuku’s own build, his wrist and shin armor like Izuku’s but cover in punkish spikes, and with two large ears like Izuku’s mask, almost all of it black and white. His twisted, fang-filled maw was smaller now, his expression less that of a permanent expression of sadistic glee, and more pensive. He had no idea if this was the injury or a personal choice, but Bakugou had no clue what to make of this new appearance. He held out his hand to Bakugou, much to the surprise of the former, who recoiled slightly in surprise.

“Join us.” He said, his voice far less powerful and authoritative. “Join us in this fight, Katsuki Bakugou.”

When he said nothing, Venom continued. “I can’t explain it, but I have grown to like you, like my host. I admire your drive, but not your arrogance. Your strength, but not your ambition. If we work together, we can do this, with my power, Izuku’s will, and your drive and strength.”

Bakugou stood up, looking down the streets to make sure All Might hadn’t spotted them, before clearing his throat and wiping any vomit from his mouth and chin, his tone losing the heated, rage-filled edge it usually held. “If there’s anything I learned from my hits on him, is that nothing less then 100% will do him in. We have to throw everything at him in one or two hits, and then break off, got it?”

“All or nothing.” Venom replied.

He took Venom’s hand and shook it, the two nodding to each other. “We’ll do this together.”

Venom grunted, as the two quickly began to make their way down. He wanted to apologize for the remarks he had made, but thought against it. Bakugou had been a prideful barbarian, making things miserable for Izuku. Venom would never forgive such behavior. Izuku was his chief concern, and any physical or emotional harm would be repaid in full, and Bakugou still owed much to Deku.

‘Hopefully, he’ll start to change.’ Venom thought, narrowing his white eyes.  
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The tests were more variable for the rest of the students. Jirou and Koda were getting buffeted by the pure undiluted sound of Present Mic’s voice, with his on the low end of his top frequency, and still leaving them shaken and their ears bleeding. Mina and Denki were being stopped at every turn by Nezu’s strategies and movements, probably not helped by their lacking academic and on-the-fly strategies against a being whose genius went beyond most humans. Sero meanwhile was knocked out cold, and Mineta left at Midnight’s mercy. Aizawa had instructed his fellow teacher, Midnight to put Mineta especially through the meatgrinder. He was intelligent, but in nearly every other way would make a terrible hero.

Meanwhile, the teacher in question, stood perched on a power-line, overlooking the whole city, waiting for Todoroki and Yaoyoruzu. He had decided long ago to not put them through the ringer as much as other students that would be here. Something else was needed to push them along. Finding out the delicate differences in temperament, disposition and Quirk use was important for investigative, strategic-combat Hero, but even more for an instructor of his type.

He fixed his goggles over his eyes, and prepared for the fight to come. In most situations, being stuck in a city environment would be much more difficult for him to detect targets. It’s why he preferred to work at night, when activity levels were down, but in this situation, with only three people in the city, was the perfect environment for a hunt.

He heard them beginning to approach from the northern alleyways, the feint sound of boots hitting the pavement and ground sounding from the streets below. Despite the weights on his wrist and ankles, uncomfortable to be sure, he didn’t let this stop or hamstring his movements. He moved with all the practiced precision of a jungle cat, moving from the top of one powerline to another with the help of his capture cloth, or along the top of the buildings, following the sound of his two students.

Todoroki took the lead, Yaoyuruzu behind, and with a new costume for hero work. He was impressed by the upgrade. One, because it was far more practical in mind for hero work, including shorts and a tank top, elbow and knee pads, a device fitted over her right eye for tactical read-outs, and combat-designed sneakers. Aizawa wondered what had started her redesign, but was thankful on some level. It was far more practical for the job at hand.

Now it was time to see if the new costume brought with it a new confidence.

They moved among the streets, some dolls falling from Yaoyuruzu’s arms, as she tucked them into her belt and other holding parts in her costume.

“If you can, try and make some small objects, so we know when he’s near.” Todoroki instructed, looking around for any sign of their teacher. “I’ll try and take him out with a quick and precision attack.”

“You certainly always have a plan.” Momo muttered, creating some Matyroshka dolls, before straightening and clearing her throat. “I might have an idea of my own.”

Todoroki turned, raising an eyebrow inquisitively, and sounding intrigued by her offer. “Oh? What is it?”

“It’s...well I’m not sure.” Momo replied, sounding defeated already.

“Well, I’m...” He, before stopping and freezing in place for a second, noticing something that he couldn’t put to words.

“My Quirk shut off.” She said, looking around, as Todoroki raised his right hand to prepare an attack, frost building along his hand and fingers.

Aizawa lowered himself right between them from his scarf. “You’re both too late.”

He turned to Shoto first, the Duel Element user swiping his hand in front of him, only to find his ice break into mere flakes of snow and frost, and nothing more came from his hand. Aizawa drew close to him, focusing all his intent upon Endeavor’s Heir, before Shoto swung a round house kick aimed at his ribs. Aizawa easily jumped back out of the way. Shoto had good footwork and strength in every hit, but he was unpracticed, too used to overwhelming foes with all his power rather then a balanced approach with firepower and hand-to-hand combat.

Aizawa ignored Momo as she ran off, before wrapping up Todoroki in a section of his scarf, before hanging from the powerlines, and securing it. “You really think I won’t escape from this?”

“Sure, try it.” Aizawa replied simply, before tossing several dozen caltrops under him. “Watch where you land.”

“What are you, a ninja?” Shoto grumbled, shaking his head.

“You took charge of the whole mission. Very admirable, trying to take the brunt off her,” Aizawa remarked, adjusting his goggles to apply his eyedrops carefully in. “But you should talk first.”

He finished up, before running off to pursue her, leaving Shoto floored. He had thought going straight for a quick and easy win would be for the best, but now, things had escalated and changed faster then he thought possible.

Aizawa meanwhile, had run after and nearly caught up with Yaoyuruzu, who thought she had hidden herself in an alleyway between two of the buildings, not far from the location where Shoto had been tagged and trapped, he pulled back his capture cloth, ready to entangle an arm or leg, before something flew towards him.

A Matyroshka doll.

He raised an eyebrow, slightly annoyed, slightly confused, before smacking it away with the other hand, the doll falling apart to reveal….

A Flashbang detonator within the doll, perfectly sized to fit in. Aizawa shut his eyes tight and swung his arms up to block, before a blinding flash of light and heat exploded outwards, knocking him back and out of the air, and giving his ears a horrible ringing, even as he hit the ground and rolled to his feet, blinking to try and focus, as Momo ran off, back towards Todoroki. 

It seemed partially planned, but her body language and everything else showed panic and hast in execution.

‘I guessed she would get some confidence in herself with the new outfit and approach, but she’s still 15.’ He thought, blinking away the last of the blinding light, and following, using his capture scarf to get on the roofs, and run across them. ‘I need to approach this more carefully. This is a delicate time for her.’

He had to admit, she was doing better then he predicted. Perhaps Jirou had helped with the costume and new attitude going forward. He’d just have to wait and see how this went.  
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Tokoyami drew Dark Shadow back towards himself, the two clones of Ectoplasm disappearing with a flash into white clouds, and fading from sight, as three more stood from the clouds across the floor, stepping away from the pillars, as Dark Shadow lashed out, claws slicing through them like butter, throwing others into walls, as more and more clones began to appear. Dark Shadow drew back it’s claws, narrowing his yellow eyes in rage.

He was about to relax slightly, the clones a fair distance and within range of Dark Shadow, before he noticed two more clones come to life behind, rising from the mist on the ground, and too close. Far too close now. He didn’t have time to wtihdraw Dark Shadow back towards him, the two would be on him before he could. He couldn’t use the special technique he had been practicing with Izuku and Venom. He had just gotten it down, but didn’t trust himself to use it in a combat situation like this.

A blur of green and black flashed back him, Tsu smashing into the chest of the first Clone, before jumping onto the, and pushing him into the pillar with all the force she could manage. The two flattened and returned to white mist, vanished from sight. Dark Shadow lashed out another Clone trying to charge at Tokoyami, before before bringing him back to his side.

“That was close, let’s keep moving.” Tokoyami said quickly, as they turned to the next door.

They ran for the doors, Tokoyami running as fast as he could, Dark Shadow hanging over his shoulders, as Tsuyu bounded forward on all fours, before coming to a door. He kicked it open, as six more clones appeared from the plasma across from the floor, blocking their path forward. Tsu kept calm, breathing deeply, as Tokoyami looked on in shock, Dark Shadow drawing forward to prepare for the next round of fighting.

“Does he ever run out of clones?” Tokoyami asked aloud, shaking his head in surprise.  
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All Might ran through the streets, keeping his ear peeled both for any sign of the two, as well as any sign of the other teachers getting restrained and beaten. He had headed back towards the exit to head them off, ignoring the irritating feeling of the weights on his wrists and ankles. 

‘Man, these things are heavy.’ He thought, trying to focus on the road ahead. 

“Where are you heading?” Bakugou shouted behind him, jumping from the alley, hand raised at him.

All Might turned, surprised they hadn’t tried to retreat after the severe beating he had put them through, before an explosion tore through the air, hitting him in the face, and bringing his hands up to block the explosion, before Bakugou landed on his feet, released another, then another.

‘Come on Deku, do it! Do it! Make yourself useful you damn nerd!’ Bakugou angrily thought, clenching his jaws tight, as he glared out at All Might. “Deku!”

Venom, still not at full size appeared from the other alley behind All Might, his steps and movement far more silent and lacking the earth-shuddering then his standard form, with one of Bakugou’s grenadier gauntlets on his right arm. All Might turned in surprise, Bakugou jumped out of the way of the blast radius. Venom barred his teeth, before the Gauntlet and pulled the pin out.

“Sorry All Might, try to dodge.” Venom hissed quietly, as heat built up from the barrel, before exploding outwards in a great fireball that tore through the area around and all behind All Might.

The explosion of white fire erupted outwards, tearing through everything, and pushing Venom back. The heat was bad enough, almost feeling like his body was going to be fried in seconds, until it died away, but the recoil added to that, briefly throwing his arm back and almost shattering his shoulder, before Venom’s superior strength asserted itself, resisting both the recoil, and resetting any injury to his host’s arm.

‘How does Kacchan use this stuff?’ He thought, wincing within Venom’s ‘body’, before Bakugou flew overhead, carried by small level explosions behind him.

“Move!” He shouted, Deku following behind him as quickly as he could, first on foot, before jumping from one side of the building to another.

Deku had to admit, he liked this form Venom had chosen. For one, it was much faster and more agile then the larger form, and far less intimidating, better for actual hero work. And it also felt more like his own body, losing that strange feeling that came with Venom’s other form. All Might watched them head for the exit, smiling proudly at the both of them.

“You’ve worked together wonderfully. Now boys, it’s time to see what your sensei can!” He declared, stretching his legs outward slightly, preparing himself for another go at his students.

He could feel his muscles start to tighten and quake as he moved, bearing a broad smile in spite of the aches he was starting to feel build in his body. It wasn’t just the weights and all the attacks he had thrown out starting to make him feel his limits. The explosion attack had been quite the whooper. But he wouldn’t give up. His students wanted to give it their all, so he’d respect that 

“That was a good hit, I think we got a bit of an advantage.” Venom stated, running far faster then Bakugou had ever seen Deku move, or Venom come to think of it. 

“Yes, and the next blow will be all me, while you distract him, got it?” Bakugou ordered, sounding almost desperate for a chance to prove he could take All Might himself, prove that he was just as much a threat as Deku, if not more so. “We can win this if we give another all out attack.”

“Yes, yes, and then what?” All Might asked, suddenly bounding between them, and keeping pace with both at a full run.

Bakugou flinched for just a second, only a second in fact, bringing up his Grenadier Gauntlet as quickly as he could and about to unhook the pen from it, when All Might swung an upper cut with such speed and power, his Gauntlet was shattered and he was sent back. Izuku prepared his own response, only for All Might to swing a back and shatter that one as well, leaving both defenseless.

Venom roared, jumping and swinging at All Might’s face. The Number 1 simply raised his blocking the blow, only for Venom to slip around and go to his inside. He was almost surprised by how fast he had moved, expecting Venom to go for short bursts of power and speed, but lacking the agility to slip around his guard. Venom was about to swing another cleaving slash at All Might, before the number One swung his upper fist up and into his chest, knocking the air from host and Symbiote, and sending them flying away.

Bakugou prepared to fire another blast, as All Might simply turned on his heel and slammed knee first into his chest, smashing his teeth together so hard and so fast, Bakugou thought they would shatter in his head, as the force sent him flying upwards and into a building. Bakugou through the air, barely comprehending anything that had happened after that, and smashing into a high rise with stunning force, leaving a cloud of dust and dirt in his wake.

Venom sprang to his feet, roaring at All Might, his voice still deep despite his decreased size. “Don’t write me off yet, Old man!”

He bolted through the air, like a black bullet, and slammed a right hook into All Might’s face as the Hero turned to face. All Might backed up at first, surprised by the force and power of the hit, as Venom barraged him with more hits, moving and striking with the speed and force that not even top level heroes could hope to equal, as be brought his arms up to fend off the strikes.

The punches struck harder then Bakugou’s explosions, but like that, Venom and Midoriya were going for volume of hits, not strength, and even Venom’s impressive hits weren’t going to put him down. Bakugou exploded out from the building, clearing all the dust away from him in an instant, before spinning and torpedoing towards All Might at high speed. All Might turned just in time to have Bakugou release a blast of smoke and fire into his face.

He hobbled back slightly, surprised by how quick Bakugou had rebounded, as Venom jumped and slammed another punch into his face. It was desperate and fast, these attacks, but didn’t have the power to end them like either were hoping for. Venom swung for another strike, only for All Might to snatch his wrist, and swing him down, smashing him into Bakugou with stunning force, throwing the Explosion-user to the ground. Venom roared in rage and anger, and as Bakugou rose again, All Might threw Deku back into him, before tossing the Symbiote-clad before over his shoulder, like used trash, but with enough force sending dirt and debris into the air around them.

When the dust cleared all around them, All Might had placed his foot on Bakugou’s chest, just as the boy was starting to get to his feet.

“You boys have done an excellent job, working together despite your own apprehensions,” All Might said proudly, as Venom struggled to get to his feet, hissing like a ravenous Alligator, as he quickly mended the injuries Izuku had taken. “But that was the bare minimum for this test!”

“Shut. up.” Bakugou growled through his teeth in rage, as sparks fizzled and burned from his palm, as the armor glowed a bright orange, before a pillar of flame and ash exploded outwards from all around him, All Might grunting in surprise, before being tossed upwards by the force of the explosion, and his own surprise from it.

Bakugou struggled to his feet, trying to catch his breath from having a boot laid on his chest, as he looked over to Deku, snarling at the Black-clad Classmate.

“Deku, run you fucking idiot!” He shouted, and to Venom’s surprise, there was no fury or hate in his voice, but desperation.

“Deku, what do we do?” Venom asked, for once completely surprised by this. There had never been a foe he couldn’t beat, nothing he couldn’t overcome with the proper use of strength and power. 

In all his years, only his child Carnage, his leader Riot, and the Emperor of the Symbiotes itself, with a select few others, could claim to be stronger or more powerful then him. He had never thought a feeble human of any kind could defeat him, not without the right Quirk anyway.

‘I guess this One for All is the right Quirk.’ Venom thought, as Izuku went through his plans, trying to figure something out to keep them out of this.

“We should get out of here while All Might’s in the air!” Izuku suddenly shouted to him. Venom nodded, jumping up extending a tentacle outwards, striking one of the buildings and pulling himself further up and into the skies.

Venom extended another tentacle outwards, swinging forward, until something shot out behind him. Venom felt his sense going off, the Symbiote turning his head to see All Might flying through the air back first.

“New Hampshire Smash!” He yelled, his back smashing into Izuku’s own, the Symbiote at first absorbing the blow, as he did with everything, before the shock went through his body, Izuku’s spine cracking and almost breaking, as he let out a roar of agony, and was tossed through the air.

Izuku was still screaming in pain, as Venom, in daze, felt his body flying through the air, before smashing through one side of a bus set up for the arena, crashing through winds, metal and seats, before smashing through the other side and sliding face-first across the ground. Izuku tried to get his feet, before yelling out in shock from the agony riding through his back. Venom released a powerful shriek, a loud, shrill noise that was more felt then heard, All Might and Bakugou both freezing place for a moment, looking to the downed Deku, before both continued to fight.

“Deku, hold on, I need to repair your back!” Venom warned, his voice full of panic and fear. “Your spinal cord was nearly shattered, the nerves along with it!”

“Kaachan needs our help!” Izuku protested, trying to rise again, before falling on his elbows.

“And we won’t be able to help, if you don’t let me work!” Venom hissed, retreating into his body to try and mend the damage as quick as he could. “A cripple cannot fight All Might!”

‘Come to think of it, we barely can do it now.’ Venom mentally added to himself, getting everything back in order within his host’s body. ‘Can we even win this?’  
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Within the labs of All for One, Riot had sat down at the operating tables, hostless and vulnerable, pieces of the symbiote extracted by the expert hand of the doctor. More of it was going to be needed, their master had said so. Riot’s alien biology gave such an advantage to their forces, even if extracting it was a pain for the Symbiote Team Leader for a few moments. As he was extracting the last pieces of the slimy Symbiote’s mass, the Symbiote stiffening and retracting into a small, spherical mass for a moment, as the doctor slammed a foot down.

“Riot! I haven’t finished my operations yet! Do NOT MOVE!” The Doctor barked in anger, having told his patient at the beginning of every operation to not move while he filled up the vials with biomass. “We don’t have much time before you start to die!”

Riot returned to his original state, complying, and unable to communicate his distress. Venom had called out, for a fraction of a second, in a panic. It was an exact location and everything, everything he needed in a but a microsecond to find his expatriate comrade. He relaxed slightly, realizing that, even if he could, All for One would bare him seeking out his erstwhile team member. Whatever threat Venom faced, it would be his to deal with alone.

‘He wished to run off to the first little host and play hero, let him.’ Riot thought in his alien tongue in disdain. Venom was always a weak link.  
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With the bowels of a great temple, out of sight even the most dedicated Heroes, was a gathering of cloaked figures, the stars within their robes glittering and shifting with every touch, and reading and carefully translating the tomes and relics before them, at work desks assembled before a great altar that appeared to be made out of furbished, polished human bone. The leader among them stiffened for a moment, looking around as if confused.

“Supreme Prophet Al’Hazred, is everything alright?” Another of the robbed Prophets asked.

“Nothing Prophet Whately, all of you keep to your tasks.” Kitab remarked, drawing himself up, looking away for a moment, his deep, burning orange eyes narrowed in thought. “I sensed Venom is in danger.”

“Should Dreadface and our agents be sent?” Whately asked, concerned. “Venom and the host, the boy, is important to the Prophecies of Knull.”

Kitab held up a hand, stopping them all, not turning to face them, still looking up at the portraits and paintings that adorned the walls, one of the infamous beast Grendel of the Beowulf legend. They waited intently, waiting for the Supreme Prophet to finally speak to them. He kept his head up, listening intently, at something none of them could hear, for a moment, before nodding. His right hand turned into a blackened claw.

“No, we are too close now. The call was too short to be an actual distress signal.” Kitab said sternly, turning to the other Prophets of the Church. “Continue our work, brothers and sisters.”

“As you wish.” They all said in union, bowing their heads deeply. “So sayeth the Voice of Knull.”  
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Kinzokumure stood with several of his colleagues, deep within the bowels of Ogasawara, looking over the complex machinery that kept their three Symbiote victims alive and well fed. The yellow, purple and green masses shifted and struggled in their canisters, as they always did. As they watched the three Symbiotes suddenly retracted within their tubes, reacting to something they couldn’t detect, either going completely flat to the bottom, pressing against the walls, or pressing onto the top.

Godzilla, in human form, raised an eyebrow as he approached, rubbing the back of his neck as he approached. “Are they supposed to do that?”

“They’ve never before.” Kinzokumure remarked, turning to one of the lab technicians. “You, what’s going on?”

“I legitimately don’t know sir.” The scientist, heading towards the computers to analyze their reactions and health. “They must be picking up on something we cannot.”

They marched up the metal stairs, heading to a large plexiglass bay overlooking the entire area, the first door opening, as steam from the decontamination, waiting for the second doors to open.

“Truly dreadful.” Kinzokumure remarked simply, Nakajima giving him a sideways glance. What exactly did he have to do with this? “What was it?”

“If I knew, I’d tell you. It might be another Symbiote calling to them?” The scientist said, as they entered through an automatic door, and into the tech bay.

A guard stood by against the wall, as the two scientists were tapping away at the computers, the lead technician, Hero and Agent standing over them and watching the reaction. While their bodies were healthy still, no signs of death setting in yet, or damage, they were riled up by something.

“What do you mean ‘another symbiote could be calling them’?” Kinzokumure asked, focusing his glare at the lead scientist.

“Godzillo here and his fellow Kaiju Quirk users respond to certain calls from across the world, and it might be the same,” The scientist managed, eyeing Kinzokumure’s side arm holstered in his suit.

The agent considered his words for a moment, nodding slightly, as he turned to watch the Symbiotes struggle in their tanks. “It must be Venom.”

Godzillo kept his face even and unreactive, but could not keep his emotions under wraps. A tide of worry began to swell in his chest. He wondered if Izuku was in danger, if he should go and see him, but decided to wait. Kinzokumure would want to follow as well, and any danger that could come about would be greatly magnified. The only choice left was to wait, and hope things went well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Final Exams was a part I had a lot of ideas for that I'm happy got to make it here. Usually it's a lot of pruning the branches to keep things in order and not let the plot get too out of whack. So, I had Venom and Bakugou get a few more hits in on All Might, simply because Venom's just that much stronger then Izuku was at this point. The scene in which Venom offers to work with Bakugou is based partially on the scene from Cates' run, where Venom and T. Rex fuse to fight Grendel. It's a bit of a step for them to not be so...mean with each other.
> 
> Venom's psychic scream comes from the Planet of the Symbiotes comic, and the Agency and the Church picking up on it is going come into play very soon. On that note, I also really enjoy writing the Church of new Darkness. I wish I could do more chapters with them.
> 
> I also redesigned Momo's costume, simply because I dislike the official design, as well as working that into a little change in character going forward.


	27. Halloween Special : Grendel's Tale.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The tale of how the Grendel Symbiote and it's Mother came to this world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bit of a warning, this might be a little more bloody then previous chapters. Just fyi for those unprepared.

In the age before Quirks or even when such powers could be dreamed of, there were monsters, beasts of power and brutality far worse then even the figure of One for All could manage. To the primitives of Earth, such creatures were the figures of Gods and spirits, beings to sacrificed too and appeased through any means needed to keep things controlled and violence tempered, mortal lives preserved. Modern scientists, historians and the like would consider these tales nothing more then legends, told to keep their listeners obedient and fearful of the unknown, a way to structure and organize society.

There was no way of knowing such could be correct.

In the inky blackness of space, beyond stars and light, sat a thin, almost emaciated figure, it’s skin almost white, it’s matted, long white hair flowing stiffly from it’s almost humanoid head. The figure was masculine at least, covered in back armor, a red dragon symbol across it’s chest, a red cape of writhing hands grasping and twitching in the air at random all around it. His thin skeletal hands ended in claw-like nails, as his jaws opened to reveal row upon row of horrid fangs.

All around him, a maelstrom of black and red, oil-like creature writhed and struggled around him, forming reptilian, horrid faces, red and black spirals dominating each one’s head. He rose from his throne, a twisted structure of organic shape and molded as though from skin, looking out over the image before him. Beings, of countless species and races, struggled and screamed futilely, as waves of black and red crashed into them, suffocating them, strangling them, pulling them down into the inky, brackish, oil-like mass.

The being gave a twisted smile for a moment, before looking to the serpentine, alien beasts around him.

“This world has been delightful, but it is time for another,” He declared to them, as they hissed with joy and delight at their master’s every word. “Go forth my dragons, find me another world to feast upon. Take as much flesh as you wish, but leave enough for your little siblings, and their souls for me.”

From the great mass below, two beasts took flight into the great void, searching for the next world to feast upon. One was red as fire, it’s visage more skull-like, it’s wings more visibly tattered, it’s eyes those of fire. The other was a dull red, almost brown, it’s body shimmering with black, and it’s eyes burned with small spirals within. 

The figure watched them leave, a smile satisfaction on his eerie features, tapping his clawed nails together with delight. He must have more and more and more and more. Whatever mortals he claimed was never enough. He could never have enough until everything was swallowed into his void, into his servants’ mass.

He was Knull. The Void God, The King in Black, Him of No Name and Every Name, The Primordial Host, Lord and Creator of the Symbiotes.

And before All for One or Re-Destro at set their sights on rewriting the world to their whims, before other gods and demons of the stars hungered for it’s blood like his deceitful ally, Ghidorah, or his ‘sibling’, Malebogia, Knull had set his sights upon earth.

Zealand, Denmark, 700 AD

The arrival of Grendel was one unnoticed by the humans. On the island of Zealand, east of Denmark, before the peninsula and Sweden, sat the Great Hall of Heorot, ruled by wise King Hrothgar, and attended to by his Hird and Jarls. In these simple times, heroes were simply those with the best sword arm and power granted by God, and the only threat were the other tribes around them. But, forces beyond their understanding were at work, forces far worse then a tribe of Nordic raiders or inter-Clan politics.

As the feasts broke, roasted pork, cooked beef and cup of ale upon cup of ale was consumed and supped, something came from the bogs and fens outside the town, from the mountains it seemed to come. The horrid beast was humanoid in build, wings flaring slightly behind it, pointed ears picking up the sounds of cheering and drunken singing. It’s milk white eyes narrowed as it approached the hall, a long tongue lapping out of it’s jaws, and licking the area where it’s lips would be, it’s fangs glistening in the dark.

To the people of Heorot, it was a Demon, a descendant of Cain the First Murderer himself. But to itself, it was merely Grendel. That was what the creator had called him, and what he was called as his victims screamed out for his mercies and to try and appease him.

And like many of it's kind, it was hungry,

As the night died down, and the celebrations ended, the warriors began to head to their cots and beds, hoping to rest the night away after good eating and drink. Swords, axes and spears were hung from the pillars and walls, no need for them, or so they thought. As the first of them began to fall to restful sleep, a boom sounded, rousing some from their sleep, as the outer walls of the settlement were breached in an instant, something tall and powerful, it’s head almost coming to the top of the walls, the sentries on duty now splattered across the ground, the paved roads, and walls, the creature hardly waiting, before it broke into a run, heading straight for the hall.

Other sentries had come, forming ranks and trying to leverage their spears to stand before the creature, before something from the air flew down and smashed into their ranks, tearing them to pieces with claw and fang alike. The beast’s hate-filled yellow eyes focused as it coldly and without mercy tore through them, chainmail and padded armor torn apart with ease as it left gore and viscera across the walls of the huts and hamlets, the second beast snapping down on an axemen trying to hack into it’s arm, and tearing up, leaving nothing but his legs, as it quickly chomped him down.

The first bounded down the streets, extended it’s wings, and took flight, sailing upwards, before it got close enough, landed, and smashed into the great Mead Hall’s doors, crouching slightly to charge forward and seize the closest two warriors, crushing one in his grip like a fruit, and spraying blood and gore throughout the hall, and quickly and messingly devouring the other in a few quick, bloody snaps, spraying bits and pieces of organ and bone throughout.

Yells and screams of horror erupted from the hall, as warriors tried to rush to their places to grab weapons and shields to launch a defense against the creature. Wood planks broke and shattered as the creature moved with supernatural speed, leaving broken, shattered remains in it’s wake, as the creature shrieked for more blood. The bravest Jarls and Hirdmen stabbed at it, swords slashing into it’s hide, spears puncturing it’s body, but to no avail. With a swipe of it’s horrid claws, men were turned to broken corpses, and shattering well forged swords and stout spears into broken tools.

What seemed to take so long, the beast grew tired of it’s slaughter and mayhem, and left through the door it had come, smashing and crushing the doorway it had come through, before grabbing one last struggling warrior in it’s claw, extending it’s wings and flying off. It circled around the top of the hall, shrieking at the top of it’s lungs, before landing atop one of the long houses, and roared at the top of it’s lungs, before biting into the side of the warrior, just below the ribs, and tearing out, blood spraying across it’s face, organs and guts flopping out, as it tore into the body, before tossing it away.

Knull smiled, as his horde made their way to the planet. It was too primitive, too backward to warrant a full invasion just yet. The King in Black would let his prized servants have their fun for a moment, spray Northmen and whatever other human blood they found, and come later to claim the world. For now, there was more fun to be had in consumption over absorption. He tapped his clawed fingers against the hilt of blackened blade, chuckling to himself.

“Go my Grendel, my Aglaecif, have your fun and delight.” He whispered, his voice going across the cosmos and yet could barely be heard, only among his servants. “A little vacation to break up our conquest.”

After the attack on Heorot, the beasts disappeared into the fens and bogs, leaving the screams of pain and misery as music to savor for later. At their master’s behest, few times could they savor their victims’ pain. Always, always, they merely tested and softened up the forces of their victims before Knull and their kin arrived to enslave and devour as they pleased. Now they could embrace the terror and savor the pain, savor like they did with the meat and blood and viscera of their victims.

A counter attack was launched into the fens and bogs, searching for the cave of the two beasts, but only one came to challenge them. After luring them as deep as it wished into the twisted fens, it rose from the hideout, and was upon them, devouring, tearing and glutting itself on the flesh of men and horse alike, killing and slaughtering, swords and axes not able to even pierce it’s hide. Weapons broke upon it's unnatural form, any survivors claiming the beast must have been blessed by a witch, or black magic, or by Satan or Cain themselves to turn aside their weapons like toys.

It shrieked to the skies again, intestines hung from the trees, blood painting the trees and rocks, broken corpses hung for all to say, their weapons and armor kept there, almost as trophies, almost to taunt the Danish warriors to try and come back, to try and take them back. As the Danes fled to their hold, Grendel’s inhuman, cackling laughter sounded over their heads and from the ground itself, no matter how far they fled, it not dying down, not losing it’s intensity, the Grendel always sounding behind them, inches from striking. Even back at Heorot, they could still hear it’s laughter, as loud as before, it’s rank, fiery breath on the backs of their necks. Even ignoring the dishonor of failure hoisted upon them, the very terror they had sought to slay haunted their dreams, holding loved ones bloody in it's claws, covering their children and family in thick slime and turning them into what they could only describe as demons.

In the days after, Grendel seemed satisfied with it’s meal, staying within it’s home in the swamps, picking it’s teeth of flesh and armor lodged in there from it’s victims. Their cries of mourning, during the burials and after, was like music to it’s twisted ears, a smile of satisfaction bore on it’s fang-filled maw. Every scream of night terror from the survivors was a poem, every sobbing confession to the Priests a bed time story. 

Once more, life progressed as normal, and the memory of Grendel faded into nothing but nightmare and horror stories and memories for the Danes, as it and it’s partner traveled far, burning and destroying countless villages along the way. None could say how much damage the two prized Symbiote Dragons of Knull did, for they left none to record the slaughter but broken bodies and burned villages, going as far as the brooding forests of Lithuania, the foothills of Hungary, and the rain-drenched fields of Ireland. Yet, Grendel never forgot it’s first victims.

Kings from around Denmark and the Norselands, belonging to Jutes, Wulflings, Frisii and others, sent dignitaries and others to help rebuild, to make good on oaths and promises made to help the other in case of trespass or violence to one. As they traveled in on horse and cart, rain began to fall across the island, mist shrouding the lands, as they drew closer and closer. Once within a mile of the Hall, the emaciated form of Grendel appeared once more, it’s alien form rushing from the mists and fog, breaking bodies open and slaughtering them, as the other Symbiote Dragon partook of flesh and blood elsewhere, the whole of Zealand becoming a blood-soaked ground for the two, Grendel spending many hours flaying flesh from bone as he did. He cackled at their powerlessness, gloried in the futile resistance and the fact the pathetic little King of this tiny island could do nothing but watch warriors and servants of other kingdoms fall and break beneath Grendel's claws.

Boiling with anger, a call was set out for any that could slay this terrible beast was sent out, many journeying into Grendel’s home in the swamps, only to join the rest of the dead there, not their return but their horrid screams and Grendel’s laughter signaling to the King of the Danes of his failure and weakness. The other merely stayed in the mountains, watching and waiting for something to truly give them a challenge.

It was not long before a figure arrived, surrounded by warriors of his own, the figure covering himself with a hood and long cloak, from the land of the Gaets. He claimed to be able to dislodged and defeat this Grendel and Aglaecif. He would see every death avenged tenfold, and the hall would open once more, to celebration and merry-making once more. Hrothgar, with few options to him, accepted, and prepared another feast for the Hall, to call out and bring Grendel to them.

Another night of celebration followed, as the warriors drank and ate their fill, Grendel once more rising from the swamps with a ravenous smile. As the night drew in, the sun seemingly retreating from the skies, as the Grendel stalked through the fields, past the rotted bodies and trophies of it’s past slaughters and massacres, grinning at the idea of adding yet more to it’s pile of corpses. 

As the party drew to a close, the Gaetish warriors went to sleep, setting into the night, weapons at their side, as Grendel went through the town around the Hall once more, hissing with desire and lust for blood and gore once more, not a single Dane coming to offer resistance or a fight along it’s path. It came to the door, wings folded against it’s back, before smashing open the doors, grin widening as it walked among them, green- silver saliva falling from it's jaws. They knew what always came when they tried to party, tried to find happiness in their drinks, and yet no rested here like babes unprepared. With a growl of glee, it took the first one in it’s claws, and with a mere gesture ripped the man in half, blood once more spraying the hall once more, before coming to the second Gaet. The first was barely able to yelp as the beast painted Heorot Hall with his guts.

Before he could seize the man in it’s claws, a punch swung out, striking the creature in the face. The Symbiote rumbled in surprise, shaking it’s whole body in surprise. It was rare a mortal being could muster the strength to equal it in battle. Knull had given it a strong host, a slave made from one of the Elder Races of the galaxy. The fact this mere bag of flesh could equal it meant only one thing.

Another divine force was interfering in Knull’s plan.

A savage roar broke out, as the being throw himself upon the Elder Symbiote, claws flashing and teeth lashing out, as the being answered with fists alone, expertly predicting and countering every attack from the feral Void Slave with strike after strike, grabbing the creature by the neck, and swinging it down, smashing through floor board, before wrenching it out and tossing it into one of the walls.

Grendel pulled itself up, roaring and shrieking it’s rage to all present, as the Geats gathered up their arms to try and help their comrade, who threw his hand up to stop them, preparing his muscled arms for the finishing blow upon this demon. Grendel roared at him, his hood thrown back to reveal his long, blond hair and beard to all, almost golden in color, before Grendel swung forward, intending to take the head from his shoulders. The man brought up the back of his left fist, smashing Grendel’s wrist aside, the creature roaring in surprise, before he seized it’s wrist in one hand, and grabbed it’s shoulder with the other.

The Symbiote Dragon roared in a thousand alien tongues, cursing the interloper, promising him power and anything else he could want, if he would let Grendel slaughter the humans, bring his God here and let Knull’s children claim the rest of the world. The man threw him to the ground, ignoring every word and bargain the beast made, before finally speaking in a deep, commanding tone.

“No more.”

Lightning fell and thunder roared, as, with a mighty struggle, he ripped the limb from the Symbiote Dragon’s body, tossing it away, as the creature, realizing what it was fully dealing with, crawled off into the hole it’s own body had made in the wall, and flew off, it’s wings taking it far away and back into the bog to mend it’s wounds. The Leader called up his warriors, telling them to gather their weapons, and hunt it down into the bogs it called home.

Through the storm they marched, torches lighting the way, but light was not needed. The stench of rotted bodies and long-dried blood. They followed this Geatish warrior through the path, until it took them to a forest. He held up his hand, the host before stopping, as he went in alone without another word, climbing over bush and bramble, going through the thick woods and copses, as the stench grew stronger and stronger with every step, any lesser being would feel their knees weaken and buckle under them, yet he continued, what was in this forest, the fen, was worse then any stench, would do far more damage, and create far more corpses in it’s wake then tonight.

He came to a clearing, where the stench was strongest, his face scowling in disgust, bodies, organs and pieces of men and horse and countless other animals hung in macabre displays and arrange all around, The woods and trees seem to twist themselves around in unnatural ways, the bark going gray, the branches looking like grasping digits, and on branches hung helmets and heads from countless warriors.

He steeled himself, producing a mighty hammer from his cloak, barking a challenge to the darkened night before him. For a moment, silence followed, even the rain and thunder seemingly stopping to observe the coming battle, before Grendel exploded from the ground below him, screaming in rage, before a bolt of lightning struck from the skies, the beast shrieking it’s rage and curses once more, before the hammer fell upon it’s skull-like visage, swinging with his might, until the creature stopped it’s struggle.

The creature fell on it’s back, before the marsh collapsed under neath it, sinking into the murky depths below. The moment it fell in defeat, a sorrowful, rage-filled roar echoed from the top of a mountain above, and something flew over the forests. The Warrior made his way back, jumping over trees and thickets to get back to his warriors. By time he had, he found them engaged in battle with the other creature, near identical to the first, pure crimson, feminine in build, it’s orange eyes glowing within it’s skull-like face. Already, five warrior lay broken and butchered like cattle at her feet, as it turned to the leader of the band, roaring in rage.

It’s wings spread wide, as lightning fell once, twice, thrice upon it’s form, the beast roaring in mindless sorrow and rage at it’s lost kin, as the Leader took his hammer and struck, bashing through the monster’s defenses, shattering it’s arms into odd angles and unnatural bends, it’s skull-like head shattered and cracking like glass, smoke rising from the repeated lightning strikes from it’s body, as the creature struggled in it’s final battle, before it finally fell, unable to fight any longer. It struggled for a moment, before the leader of the Geats caught it in his hand, and threw it into the forests as far as his immortal strength could manage.

The Grendel, and it’s mother Aglaecif, fell that day. Humans overtime would record the epic in the tales of Beowulf, details becoming murky in time, and as Quirks arose, tales Heroism such as that replaced with the tales brought from All Might, Endeavor and countless others to come. The tales of who they thought were Beowulf, and of Grendel and his mother, would be remembered by literary experts and historians, but most thought it a mere legend.

“The tales are falsified, I’m afraid.” A cloaked figure remarked, looking out the office window to Jaku city below him, arms folded behind him, the rain storm continuing outside. “So many lies told of Knull and his great servants.”

He spoke to a man bound to a chair, his suit a cut and ruffled, his face bruised and battered from repeated torture sessions from the tender mercies of the two guards behind him. He spat blood on the floor, breathing hard, as he shook his head.

“Why tell me this story?” He asked, his voice desperate and quivering as he watched the man studied him deeply. “What’s it got to do with anything?”

The man turned smiling and chuckling, his orange eyes aglow as he drew himself up. “Everything. Your little government agency seeks the Symbiotes, but you fail to understand what you truly seek to harness.”

He pulled up his chair, smiling at the man coldly. “Do not worry, The Church will teach you all these wrongs, and correct them into truths. You will have all the truths you seek, and so much more.”

His body was so overtaken by a mass of black, night made form, as he stood up, pulling back his cloak to reveal a form of thin, whipcord muscle, a reptilian visage of white eyes and fangs, and spines along the back of it’s arms and head. It grinned at him, as his eyes widened.

“Yes, but you needn't worry. Your sacrifice will soon bring the truth and far more out.” The Symbiote Zzzxx spoke in a low hiss, lightning striking behind him. “Take him, and prepare him for transport. We have yet more sacrifices for the altars."

The guards grabbed him and yanked him out, dragging him away in stunned silence, as Cloaked figure entered after them, wearing an identical set of robes to the figure before them.

“Supreme Prophet, our findings are almost complete.” The being reported. “Knull shall bless us this coming night.”

“Yes, Knull will bless us greatly.” Zzzxx hissed with a twisted smile, turning and placing a blackened claw against the window pane before it, looking out across the city. “Very, very soon.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't normally like the grotesque grimdark and violence in some stories. Despite Venom being a bit more "Blood and guts" type then Izuku and the MHA world, I wanted to keep the tone at least a little light. But, it's Halloween, and I figured it would be a nice treat to have some Grim and Dark for the spooky night.
> 
> The Canonicity of the End scene is kept vague, as Grendel and the rest will come a lot later, so just consider it a nebulous scene that could happen any time, because as of the current chapter, things are generally sticking close to Canon.
> 
> Also having a bit of trouble linking the music choices in the test, so I'll list the music choices here and their corresponding scenes. Don't laugh at me for being a Tech Boomer.
> 
> Grendel's First attack on Heorot - The Thing, Despair
> 
> The Mysterious Warrior's fight and his search in his forest hideout - The Thing, Bestiality (yes, that's the name)
> 
> The final scene with Prophet Kitab and Zzzxx - The Thing, Eternity


	28. Final Exam Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The final battle of sorts begins, as other forces are drawn increasingly towards the Symbiotes.

All Might had used the recoil from his hit to get back in the air, as Venom struggled to repair all the damage caused to his host. The Number One was about to go down and finish the job, when he heard the distinct sound of Bakugou’s palm explosions sounding off behind him, turning to see the Blond racing to him at top speed to try and intercept him. He was almost impressed. Even with their beating, both refused to give up in the face of such overwhelming odds. Still, there was a fine line between determination, and sure stubbornness in the face of reality.

“The gauntlets let me let loose without risk.” Bakugou declared, leveling his arms at All Might, muscles tightening, tendons spasming as he prepared a massive blast from his palms. “But I was an idiot for thinking I could win this without taking risks!”

Heat built up in his hands, the yellow glow intensifying to an orange, then a blood red, before the explosion tore through the air at All Might, an explosion with such force it would’ve annihilated any of the buildings still standing around them. The explosion, like an arrow head ripping through the sky, ripped through the air and hit All Might head-on, the boom leaving a ringing in all three’s ears, Venom bristling from the intense sound.

Izuku looked up in shock, his jaw almost falling as he watched. “That’s two of the same explosion, from the Festival, right in a row!”

“His body could be damaged from that.” Venom noted stoically as he began to finish and mend the spine, as Bakugou clutched his wrists in pain in the air.

“Deku! Hurry!” Bakugou shouted down to him. Izuku knew what he needed to do, but Venom refused to let him move from his position.

“We can’t move. Any movement could clip the spinal cord and cause more damage.” Venom hissed in his ear over the din of battle. “Stay. Still.”

Bakugou landed on his feet, before extending both palms upwards at All Might, and ignoring all the pain shooting up and down his arms, screamed to the high heavens and unleashed a blast of concentrated hell fire from his palms straight at the charging All Might.

Izuku knew he didn’t have much time, but wasn’t sure what to do. When Bakugou said to hurry, did he mean to get to the exit and win, or to rush back and help him win the fight. As his spinal pain lessened, and he felt the tension in his back slacken and his muscles loosen, signaling everything returning to his control, as Venom coalesced around his body and skin, the cold black liquid spreading fast across him, as Venom returned to his form based on Izuku’s costume.

‘What’s the plan?’ Izuku asked his other.

“That’s for you to decide.” Venom replied simply. Izuku could tell he was edging for a fight, but was waiting for his host’s word.

In the haze of fire and smoke, All Might had easily evaded Bakugou’s attack, riding the explosion and flying towards Izuku at high speed, planning to take him by surprise and finish him quickly, before Venom could fully form around him. Bakugou jumped and belined to in front of All Might as fast as he could manage, eyes wide and bloodshot. Smoke gathered from his palms, as his muscles began to tighten and rods of fiery pain began to stab through his arm, before he unleashed another explosion.

All Might dove out of the way, spinning in midair, as Bakugou cut it off in surprise, ready to reposition and attack again, before All Might swung a roundhouse kick into Bakugou’s ribs, and kicked him into the ground. Izuku’s eyes widened, turning to see Bakugou fall to the ground. Venom wrapped around his arms and face, his fangs flashing in rage.

“We’re going to defeat All Might.” Izuku declared, Venom’s smile widening slightly.

“Perfect Deku.” He declared, turning and jumping straight at All Might.

All Might had been focused on Bakugou, ready to finish him off, as Venom swung forward, and struck out, hitting All Might in the side of the face with a punch, knocking him away. All Might stumbled back from the hit, before turning to Deku, his trademark smile briefly wavering, before preparing to face him as well. Bakugou sprang up, firing an explosive blast at his back, Bakugou landing behind him and firing another, as Venom swung a hook into his stomach, hoping to stop All Might, who merely swung a backfist into his face, knocking Venom back, as Bakugou unleashed another high-powered explosion at his back.

All Might turned to grab him and stop the attack, before Bakugou jumped back and landed further away, Venom jumping to his feet, and leaping through the air, tendrils shooting out and swinging forward, before landing on his feet besides Bakugou. Even with the blows they had given out, All Might stood over them, imposing as ever, like they had thrown their all against a mountain, nothing of consequence happening to their foe, the smile that usually inspired others, now looking like a cold mockery to them.

“I need to go all out, and I can’t with you here.” Bakugou said, neither looking from All Might.

“Don’t worry about me, can you handle it?” Venom replied, looking aside to Bakugou.

“I’ll fight til I drop.” Bakugou responded flatly, sparks flying off both hands, as Venom nodded.

Both were keenly aware that time was dwindling quickly as they stood there, ready to attack All Might. He could stand there and gather his strength again, and simply wait out the clock. There was little to do but keep throwing themselves at him until he gave. As Izuku and Venom hung through the air for a moment, he reflected on what he was doing, almost laughing to himself. He had told Venom they would have to run, that no one in their right mind would ever go head-to-head with All Might.

“You’re one of us insane people now Deku.” Venom remarked with a wry chuckle. “Welcome to the jungle.”

Izuku chuckled softly, as they both turned their attention to their teacher, All Might ran at Bakugou, as he primed another explosion, the muscles tightening and contracting in his arms as he prepared another blast, before Venom swooped down and swung a kick at All Might side. The Number One easily brought his hand upward, blocking the attack, and sweeping his hand out, knocking Venom back slightly, who spun in the air, and landed on his feet, baring his fangs like a wolf.

All Might turned back just as Bakugou delivered another high yield explosion, knocking All Might off his feet for several feet, before he landed back on the ground and brought his arms up, bale to hold himself in place as the explosion ripped through the area. Venom roared, backing away as the heat back to sear his body, smoke rising from it, as he watched. It had torn apart the city street in front of Bakugou, leaving vaporized crust before him, and, as the explosion cleared, had left some parts molten, melted mess. All Might knelt down on one knee, smoke rising from his form, and from all around him, seemingly down and out from the blast, as Bakugou breathed hard. He had thrown everything he could into the last 4 or so blasts from his hands, and could barely lift his arms up, the pain ripping through them too intense. He wondered if he had pulled or torn the muscle badly from the last two attacks. He grinned happily, despite all of it, sure he had won.

Venom approached, carefully avoiding the blasted out crater that was the street, grinning his usual mad expression to Bakugou, who was too tired and thoroughly beaten up to do anything. “Is this victory?”

“Not. Yet.” All Might said, shaking off the dust from his body, and rising to his feet.

The last few blows they had landed had weakened him, and he didn’t have long before he would be forced to give way and return to his skeletal frame, but that was not for a long time. He jumped up and zipped forward, smoke cleared completely by his passing, Venom jumping forward and tackling him in midair, the two exchanging blows for a moment, before All Might grabbed Venom by the arm and neck, and threw him into the still-hot ground, the Symbiote shrieking in agony the moment he touched the ground, releasing All Might and desperately clawing at his hands to let him go.

All Might would grant his request, lifting up and throwing him into one of the nearby buildings. Venom crashed through the door, two pillars within, before hitting the wall, and slumping down, defeated.

Throughout all of this, Bakugou had raised his left arm, hoping to send another blast, his hand shaking like a leave, but as the sparks build in his hand, another lance of pain stabbed through his arm, this one much more intense then any before, as he fell to his knees, grabbing the limb in pain and yelling out in agony. All Might gave no quarter, the moment he had tossed Venom aside, jumping on Bakugou next.

He flipped the Explosion User over his hip and slammed him into the ground. All Might knew he wouldn’t be able to put up much a fight now, but didn’t want to leave anything to chance. Even an injured fighter of Bakugou’s caliber would and could still put a ferocious fight against someone, especially when injured and cornered.

“Sleep now, Bakugou.” All Might commanded gently, impressed either had lasted so long, but now ready to end this fight.

Much to his surprise, Bakugou laid a trembling right hand on his wrist and fired off a blast from his palm, only enough to leave some smoke and embers, but the simple act alone surprised All Might greatly. ‘He truly refuses to ever back down, doesn’t he?’

“I’ll never stop, All Might, never stop!” He said, voice weak and quaking from the repeated injuries and attacks he had thrown himself into. “I’ll break myself, bend myself til I break, but I’ll never stop fighting you! Like I told that damn nerd, I’ll fight til I drop!”

Looking at the state of things, it wouldn’t take long for Bakugou to drop. All Might was almost worried now. If this continued, both the kids, especially Bakugou could hurt themselves. With so little time left for them, perhaps All Might should let them retreat. He turned at the sound of glass and metal being broken and bent from impact, as Venom climbed from the building he had been thrown into, barring it’s fangs in rage.  
All Might released Bakugou, before turning back to Venom. He couldn’t see Young Midoriya’s features beneath Venom’s reptilian, hateful visage, but from what All Might could see in his body language, he was just as drained and tired from the fight. There was the possibility that Izuku’s usually timid personality might assert itself over the Quirk’s own, and make him stand down or run for the exit. They had both already taken so much damage, it would be suicidal to continue the fight.

Naturally, Venom, after taking a few breaths, stepped out of the building, and roared a challenge at All Might.  
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Aizawa jumped overhead, attempting to head off Yaoyoruzu before she could get back to Shoto, still bound with the scarf Aizawa had left him in. She had been much quicker to start deploying counter strategies to slow him down then he had expected, but he couldn’t say he was upset. This was just as much about getting them to use their Quirks and get them thinking about strategy as it was about encouraging them to reach their full potential. The flashbang from earlier still had him seeing stars, so he sort of wished the encouragement didn’t lead to him getting blinded.

She came up to him, reaching into her pouches, as Aizawa drew closer. “Todoroki, cover your eyes!”

Aizawa groaned to himself, as she threw the rest of the dolls upwards, the force opening them and pulling the pins out, as he shut his eyes tight and brought his arms up, as the numerous flashbangs left him seeing stars, even after covering up, and a harsh ringing in his hears, as he used his memory of the layout to bring him to the closest building, as Momo quickly lowered Shoto down, and brought him safely to ground level, past the spikes Aizawa had laid, as they made their mistake.

She began to ramble as they made their escape based Aizawa, was still shaking off his getting flashbanged at such close range. “I’m sorry I didn’t run for it, but I had a plan, and it didn’t feel right leaving you there, but I didn’t know what do, so I just went on instinct and now I’m not...”

“Yaoyuruzu, you have a plan right?” Shoto interrupted, as she looked at him in surprise. 

“Yes, unless...” She answered, before drifting off nervously.

“I should’ve asked. Whatever plan you have, let’s make it work.” Shoto spoke up again. Aizawa had been right. He ran ahead with his own plans without even asking for help. It reminded him a little too much of Tenya that night with Stain.

“First, we’ll need distance between ourselves and Aizawa.” She remarked, turning back to see Aizawa jumping from roof to roof after them, his glare intense and focused.

‘That should be easy.’ Shoto thought sardonically to himself, barely dodging out the way of another swipe from Aizawa’s scarf.  
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Things had progressed as normal for the other students, each in various states of victory or defeat. Tenya and Ojiro had quickly made their escape from the battlefield after figuring out that they stood no chance. Tsuyu and Tokoyami had made their way through most of Ectoplasm’s clones, while Mina and Denki struggled to get through any of the traps laid.

All of this was at the fingertips of Agent Kinzokumure, as he looked over the live footage of all the fights happening right now.

“UA continues to impress. Except the short grape one. He’s doing pathetically.” Kinzokumure said with the cold, detached attitude of a scientist studying an animal corpse. “Mina is your...niece correct?”

“Yes.” Godzillo remarked, trying to hid his agitation with the questions. This Agent and his government group had wormed their way into the sanctuary he had built, and now were trying to pry information from him? 

“She’s not doing well either.” Kinzokumure reported simply, passing on, before coming to the two he wanted most. “Ah yes, Midoriya and Katsuki Bakugou. Against All Might.”

“Wait, against?” Godzillo asked in surprised. Mina had been asking what to expect from her final exams, but he couldn’t really give an answer. His grandpa had handled his education, not the Hero Schools. ‘I still have the bruises gramps gave me.’

“Yes, it would appear two students are taking on a teacher, and Katsuki Bakugou and Izuku Midoriya are currently on their last legs.” Kinzokumure reported, still coldly looking over the display with little care. “Most of the others have wrapped up their battles, for good or ill, but this duo remains.”

Nakajima nodded slightly, as Kinzokumure looked back up at the Symbiotes contained before him. “I wonder if, in a moment of weakness, Venom did something to alert the others.”

Before anyone could interject, he pulled up his phone, and clicked several buttons, before waiting at the dial. Nakajima raised an eyebrow, but his expression remained largely neutral. “What are you doing?”

“Calling in another field agent. You really think I’d be the only one?” Kinzokumure replied bluntly, before the other figure answered. “Yes, Kuishinbo? Target Midoriya may have caused some reaction from the Symbiotes from his position. Move to a watch status at once.”

“You not doing the watch anymore?” Nakajima asked, as Kinzokumure looked at from the tops of his shades with his red-within-black eyes.

“No, they know me there. Other agents will have it easier.” Kinzokumure remarked, placing the phone against his shoulder for a moment. “Jofubi Kuishinbo is one of my best.”

Nakajima, as always kept his face calm and neutral, merely curious and quizzical of things, but within, was worried and anxious over this. Kinzokumure had said he would keep his family out of this, mostly, if he cooperated and allowed the labs in Ogasawara to be used. Now, this “Kuishinbo” was moving to watch the school, where Mina was at, and who knows what other agents they could have up their sleeve.

Getting to Izuku to warn him would be even more difficult too. Kuishinbo would be alert to any strange going-ons, and after taking him as a student for Internships, Nakajima could not in the slightest step out of line any further with the agency, if he and his comrades wanted to keep their Hero careers, and not end up six feet under. The next thought was risky, but he would have to go through with it.

‘They have my primary phone bugged, and my home phone,’ He thought for a moment, turning to the tubes of squirming, struggling Symbiotes. ‘But if I can slip a normal phone to Izuku, I can keep him appraised of the situation.’

Without losing a beat, Nakajima looked to Kinzokumure. “I think I’ll be heading over UA, to check up on Mina.”

Kinzokumure eyed him for a moment, before coldly replying. “You’re not planning on warning Venom are you?”

“No. just want to make sure she’s alright.” Godzillo remarked easily, looking Kinzokumure in the eyes. “A battle with teachers can be hard, right?”

“Especially when you lose so badly.” Kinzokumure remarked wryly. He really wanted to claw the Agent’s face off, but resisted the urge.

‘Yare yare, who could’ve guessed that something could best her acid.” He thought sardonically, shaking his head slightly. It had to be one of the tougher teachers, someone whose Quirk could overpower hers.

“Do as you wish, just don’t approach the subject. Jofubi will deal with you if you do.” Kinzokumure remarked, going back to his phone call conversation.

Nakajima almost wanted to laugh, but had learned pretty early on to never underestimate any Quirk user. He almost wanted to ask how the Taskforce Kinzokumure had joined could get so many Quirk users in their organization when Heroes were always scouting for that kind of thing, but thought against it. Government agencies in his experience didn’t exactly play nice with anyone.

Now, that that hurtle was over with, he had to just get Mina involved in this, however briefly. It didn’t sit right with him, but everything had to go this way. Izuku was in danger, and all meant Nakajima would have to start taking risks if he wanted to bring down this agency. He just didn’t think the risk would involve family members.

‘Have her take the burner cell to Izuku, leave it at that.’ He thought, standing still and stoic before Kinzokumure as he gave out orders to the research team. ‘Easy enough.’

He just hoped Izuku was alive for him to deliver it. Not because of the agents, but because it sounded like he and All Might were really throwing their all into the fight. He hoped Izuku didn’t go too far. He and Venom could get caught up in the heat of the moment, and even from their training the few weeks back, he wasn’t sure he could handle someone like the Number 1, even if he was handicapped.

“Sir, Mister Nakajima!” One of the Island attendants warned. “One of the holding cells has become unstable.”

“Which one?” He asked, hands beginning to morph into rending claws. “For all our sake’s, it better not be Him.”

He adjusted his coat and followed the Aide down into the lower depths of the island, leaving Kinzokumure to his  
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Venom flew straight at All Might again, swinging his hands forwards to grapple All Might down. The Pro easily intercepted, locking hands as they pushed against each other, their strength nearly equal. All Might was almost surprised. Izuku was not exactly scrawny, but between his frame and Venom sacrificing much of his bulky armored look for a smaller one, he had expected the Quirk to lose some of it’s power, but it felt just as strong as before.

‘Impressive as always Young Midoriya,’ All Might thought, as he shoved him back and prepared to deliver a pile driver. ‘But you are getting desperate.’

An explosion tore into his back, no where near the level of power and strength needed to humble All Might like before, but he still turned in surprise, raising an eyebrow as he saw Bakugou landed on his feet, raising his right hand, shaking slightly, his left arm slake at his side. He breathed hard, left eye swollen shut, as his palm heated up again.

“I’m surprised you can keep standing Young Bakugou, much less fighting.” All Might remarked, before backing away from both and narrowly dodging a punch from Midoriya. “But this fight is over. You don’t have the time to beat me or get to the gate. This is over.”

Bakugou’s remaining good eye widened, as he snarled in rage. The heat built up, as Venom instinctively backed away, before he unleashed another massive explosion, tearing through the ground, and colliding with All Might, moving past him, and blazing through to the other side, completely destroying the front of the building behind All Might. All Might staggered from the hit, smoke and steam rising from his body, shaking his head slightly to try and get the ringing out of his ears and his vision cleared.

He was reaching his limit now, the blows were starting to hit harder then he thought possible, and he could feel his muscles beginning to tighten and short out as he tried to keep his cool and keep up the fight. These two had done an amazing job, trying to break him throughout the fight, and he had a feeling even without knowing his weakness and time limit, Venom and Izuku could still have done all of this again if the situation warranted it.

‘I would praise you both, but this is over, you have neither the time nor resilience to win.’ He thought swinging a hook at Venom’s head, only for the Symbiote to nimbly doge his strike, before his hand went up by All Might’s wrist.

Before he even realized what had happened, Izuku had one part of the cuffs around his wrist. All Might cursed himself. With his Quirk running low now, he was starting to lose that legendary strength, power and most importantly, speed that would let him win. Venom brought up his left, holding the cuffs in his right, and shot out a strand of biomass, enveloping All Might’s other hand, and yanking it towards him, before slapping the cuff on both wrists at a speed even All Might had trouble seeing.

Venom snapped the tentacle back into it’s body, as Bakugou gave a tired, yet still obnoxiously proud grin to All Might, Venom slamming his foot down and roaring to the skies.

“Team Midoriya and Bakugou pass the exams!” A Robotic voice announced.

“I won! This is my win!” Bakugou declared, as both he and Venom looked at each other, regarding each other with a strange mix of curiosity and lingering resentment.

Before both fell to the ground, flat on their back, utterly unconscious from the entire effort. Venom disappeared from sight, sinking back into his host’s body.

All Might sighed to himself, flexing with his wrists and crushing the cuffs utterly, before clicking on his ear piece. “Yes, send for two medical droid units, as soon as you can.”

He sighed to himself, unfastening the restraining weights on his wrists and legs, and letting them fall to the ground heavily, before checking their breathing and pulses. He had to make sure they hadn’t done nay permanent damage in a simple exam.  
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While Todoroki and Momo had been the first to pass their exams, others would follow, or fail. Mineta, somehow, had torn victory from the jaws of defeat, while Kirishima and Sato had burned themselves out before they could even reach Cementoss. Koda and Jirou had, after some trouble and bleeding ears, managed to subdue Present Mic. Venom would later be grateful for the fact he didn’t have to fight him. Aizawa, in a moment of mercy, had decided from the get go that giving Mic to Izuku would completely remove any hope for a win.

One of the last ones remaining, however, was Uraraka and Aoyama. Stuck hanging on for dear life as 13 tried to bring them all the closer, and even hanging onto the metal railings bolted to the ground at the now repaired USJ wasn’t able to stop the incredible force dragging them towards their certain doom. Uraraka had heard that nothing could escape the pull of a black hole, but couldn’t quite grasp the idea fully until now.

“This Quirk just never stops sucking, huh?” Aoyama said, struggling to keep his grip upon the bar, as the gusts pulled and tore against them.

“You’re joking right now? She’s about to capture us and you’re joking?” Uraraka demanded over the gale screaming around them.

“No, just prepare the final attack!” He declared proudly. “My costume is not just fabulously designed, but able to redirect and move my energy attacks to other parts of my body.”

He brought his legs up behind him, angling his knees perfectly to line up with Thirteen’s body. With a wine from the machinery within, the energy built up within his navel, before two beams of brilliant blue energy shot out right at Thirteen, on a direct collision course with her, before harmlessly being sucked into the black hole within her finger.

“You do realize not even light can escape a black hole right?” Thirteen asked, stepping closer, as the gale sucked away Aoyama’s red visor/sunglasses, and broke them down as well.

He looked stricken, yelping within his throat, though whether it was a valued part of his fashion and costume being destroyed without mercy or his plan failing, it was hard to tell. Uraraka went silent, trying to think of a strategy. There wasn’t much room to move or strategize now, and her options were limited.

‘Think, think! What would Deku do in this situation!’ She thought desperately.

“You seem to be thinking offly hard right now.” Aoyama remarked nonchalantly.

“Yes, I’m trying to find a way to win!” She yelled.

“It’s about Izuku isn’t it? You like him,” He replied, with a sly grin. “You like him a lot, don’t you?”

She turned her head to him in surprise, face turning as red as a tomato, shaking slightly, before both hands left the pole to cover the sides of her face, making her instantly weightless, and much more, drawing her immediately towards Thirteen. Thirteen lurched in surprise, as Uraraka got closer, putting the cap on her finger and stopping the black hole’s destructive pull in an instant. Uraraka, still weightless, floated towards her, and, realizing the advantage, her shock and embarrassment turned to battle-focus.

She lashed out, striking Thirteen in the face, and knocking her on her back, before deactivating the gravity and falling down on top of the Hero, clicking on the handcuffs, and restraining her in an instant. She had been taught before to take away the advantage her opponent had, and surprise them with uncommon attack patterns and tactics.

“Thirteen restrained!” She declared, a hint of triumph in her voice, almost forgetting what Aoyama had said for a moment.

Almost in response to her win, the announcer’s voice came on. “Uraraka and Aoyama pass their exams!”

As this was happening, a Special forces soldier in the streets of another city in Northern Honshu, dropped to the ground, as a yellow, red and black covered figure rose up over him, the same from the meat-packing plant in Koriba city. The symbiote’s form was much different, hair longer, it’s build more feminine, reflecting the new host it had just acquired.

Scream stood in the alley, making sure no one else was there to see her at work, before quickly scaling up the wall, her claws gauging deep into the bricks as she pulled herself upwards. She did not stop until she reached the top, throwing herself over and standing atop the building for a moment, looking out over the horizon.

“Dromunda Prefecture, Kesh City, still miles from Mostafu.” She hissed to herself, growing slightly annoyed. “And Venom has gotten himself into trouble. Again. And I’ll have to rush to save him and this operation. Again.”

She rubbed a claw against her chin. “Once we join with Uraraka Ochako, and re-establish contact with Riot and Mayhem, this agency will be the first to die, for all it’s done to us. But first thing’s first.”

She took a running start, before bolting over the space between this building and the next, continuing her trek towards UA and Mostafu as quickly as she could. Transport was out of the question, buses and trains would be watched intently, planes more so by her enemies.

‘Just wait, Uraraka Ochako, we will be together soon,’ She thought, savoring the feeling of finally having a worthy host. ‘And nothing will stop us.’  
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Midoriya’s eyes shot open, his vision swimming and his head feeling like someone had taken a mallet to it. He sat up uneasily, groaning to himself, as he held his forehead. He sat, listing back and forth for a moment, before his vision sharpened and focused and he became aware of where he was. He was in the UA hospital wing, essentially, and outside, he could see the sun was beginning to set, the skies turned a low, warm orange and yellow. Inside, was All Might, in his frail form, Recovery Girl and an unconscious Bakugou in the bed next to his, and the former two did not seem aware of his waking up.

“You really don’t know how to hold back do you?” Recovery Girl demanded shaking her syringe-shaped cane at him. “If it weren’t for his Quirk and my healing, he could’ve been permanently crippled!”

“What?” Midoriya said in confusion.

“Oh you’re awake, great.” All Might remarked with a smile, as Venom’s head sprouted from Izuku’s shoulder, glaring daggers at him.

“You almost crippled us!” Venom growled.

“I got a little too into it.” All Might said sheepishly, giving a nervous laugh. “You kids really threw yourselves into that.”

Venom snarled himself, retreating back into the body, as Izuku rolled his shoulders slightly, Recovery Girl holding out a hand to steady him. “You’re stable, don’t do anything too crazy. Venom covered most of your injuries, and I put the finishing touches on a lot, but you’ll need to let it set, okay?”

“Got it.” he said, looking back at Bakugou for a moment. “What about Kaachan?”

“He’s torn muscles in his arm and was much worse for wear, he’ll need time to heal, much more then you.” Recovery Girl replied. “The rest of your class has headed for home, I think you should too, it would make my job easier.”

Izuku nodded, as All Might silently left out the door, and Midoriya went for his backpack and cloths. Venom was oddly silent, as they headed out from school. It wasn’t until they had left the premises and were on their way down the road, that Venom began to talk.

“Other then almost becoming crippled, that was fun.” Venom muttered in his head.

“What was the deal with you and Kaachan?” Izuku asked, not sure what to make of everything. “I thought you hated him.”

“I found common ground. I don’t like him for what he’s done to you, but I will acknowledge his skill and strength of will.” The Symbiote hissed, rumbling within his chest. “We did well though, all things considered.”

“And what about that scream?” Izuku asked, slightly worried. The sound had burned itself into his memory, and he did not think he’d soon forget it.

“That...oh, I must’ve panicked.” Venom said, growing desperate and manic. “This isn’t good, not good at all!”

Izuku was confused for a moment, before Venom finally spoke and explained things. “In that moment, when I thought you were going to be crippled, I released a psychic scream in a panic, something that goes across the world, and affects others of my kind. They could feel it, hear it, sense it, and exactly where I was.”

Midoirya though over everything quickly, trying not to panic. “Alright, alright, we’ve got the three on Nakajima-Sensei’s island, the one Tsuyu met in Interns, and maybe your team...”

“If Riot finds us, he’ll force us to carry out his plan, he’ll kill you or your mother, we have to leave, and run!” Venom snapped, in full panic mode now. Izuku himself felt his entire body shaking, and he wasn’t sure if this was because of his Other or his own reaction.

“Wait, Riot’s not here, and we have other people with us.” Izuku snapped, mindful of the fact he looked rather crazy talking to himself in the middle of the street. He was fortunate around UA, no one was round. “Nakajima-Sensei, Aizawa-Sensei, All Might, not to mention our friends.”

“He kills them all, he slaughters them all….he always takes...” Venom muttered, his voice low and terrified, as though he was afraid Riot would somehow hear him.

Izuku hurried home, making sure to stop by the Mrs. Chen’s place to pick up some snacks to hopefully heal up and calm down Venom.  
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Shigaraki sat back in his stool, thinking over what had happened, still mulling over what his master had told. What did make Stain so magnetic and charismatic to everyone? Shigaraki was racking his brain over it. He didn’t want to ask Kurogiri. He wanted to do this himself, but it felt like such a monumental task, trying to understand someone so different.

Weeks ago, he had been distracted from the question out of the blue by an arm’s dealer by the name of Giran, showing up along with a call from his master, and a new strange fellow who seemed interested in joining them.

“This gentlemen will help you reach your goals and recover from your setbacks.” Sensei had cautioned him. “Act professional and don’t destroy him, understand?”

With him came another figure, a strange guy who simply called himself X. He was no older then Shigaraki, but looked more worn and scared then anyone he had seen, taller and more muscular, but scars across his face, wrist, any exposed skin. He was dressed in an old, dusty, burnt in some areas, leather jacket and pants, the knees torn out. Bone spikes jutted form his knuckles, elbows, knees and his eyebrows, and along his ears, and he wore a black mask over his mouth.

“You that Hand guy, the one with Stain?” He asked, his voice a low hiss, like a Cobra’s, and as dry as a desert.

“Why do you care?” Shigaraki asked in annoyance, not wanting to hear about that blade-swinging psycho again.

“I’ve got nowhere to go, and nothing to care about.” He remarked, blackened bags under his eyes. “But you guys, you guys got something going on, and it’s really cool.”

“We’re not running a boy scout club, this is serious work.” Kurogiri remarked in annoyance. Any rebellious teen could just be a weak link that would crack or simply be sticking it to a hero parent.

“Yeah, a name like the League of Villains is totally, like, serious biz, right?” He replied, rolling his red eyes. They had no irises, and the corners were a putrid yellow. Shigaraki almost wondered if this guy had something other then an odd Quirk, like a disease.

“Why are you here?” Shigaraki demanded, clenching a pallid fist on the table counter. “And who are you?”

“Dude, Giran sent me here, said I got the Quirk for it, and the whole ‘liking Stain thing’.” he remarked dryly, his voice sounding like he hadn’t drank anything in weeks. “I was raised by crooks, criminals and prostitutes on the streets. I was named Sanshiuta Oniko, but on missions, just call me X.”

“And that, why are you wearing that?” Shigaraki asked, completely taken aback by this newcomer. The world of Quirks produced a lot of strangers and a lot more outcastes then anyone could get used to, but even this guy was out there.

“The mask? I’m kinda ugly.” X replied flatly, tapping the sides of it with both his pinkies, before looking at Shigaraki’s hand mask. “Is that why you wear the hands?”

“No.” Shigaraki hissed in reply, trying to keep his annoyance in check.

Kurogiri seemed to sense the growing animosity, at least on Shigaraki’s part. They were low on staff, to put it lightly. In fact, they hadn’t even been able to get any grunts like at UA. Everyone seemed to recognize they would just be canon fodder for any attacks and not really worth much. This guy, despite his generally hum-drum attitude, might have something.

“Sorry.” X remarked, before looking to Kurogiri. “Am I hired?”

Before either could answer, Sensei’s voice cut from the communications. “Yes, welcome to the League.”

Shigaraki looked to his master, or the computer with his voice for a moment, then the strange bone-spurred man, then back to his master, before shaking his head. Sensei had something more to the equation then Shigaraki, and he wouldn’t question what his master was doing. Even X seemed surprised for a moment, before simply nodding and silently accepting the answer from his master.

And so, a few weeks after Stain’s entrance, and as Shigaraki mended his remaining wounds, X became a fixture to their hideout, silently watching them at all times from his corner of the room. He was there, when Giran showed up, knocking twice as he always did, before poking his head inside.

“Hey there, Shigaraki, Kurogiri, how is X treating you?” He asked cheerfully.

“Hello Mister Giran.” X greeted with his usual dry tone.

“He’s here.” Shigaraki mumbled with a shrug, not at all sure what to think of the strange new member of the group. They hadn’t been able to do much to see how strong he was.

“Well, great, because me and my network have been spreading word about you a little further, putting on the right touch as salespeople, ya see?” Giran explained, as he opened the door wider, the next two stepped in, each as different as the other.

The first cheerfully stepped in, almost skipped her way in, dressed in a skirt and heavy, baggy sweater that resembled an old school uniform, brown, but with flecks of red, resembling dried blood, blond hair made into two buns at the top, and clear but cold gold eyes, with cat-like pupils, and despite her cheerful express, looked as though she was studying everyone, her veneer of bubbly energy a cover for something far more dangerous.

The other was similar to X, dressed in a loose fitting white shirt, torn up black jacket and tight black jeans, but what drew all the attention was his body and appearance. Beneath his eyes, across his lower jaw, neck, all the way down to the top of his chest, and wrists, were deep, seared in burn scars, like the man had been burned alive, leaving only the horrific, purple-black burn scars throughout his body. He had spiked black hair that glistened slightly in the low light, obviously using hair dye and gel for whatever reason. Across his face were numerous piercings and metal fillings riveted through his skin and ears, giving a strangely punkish look, to go along with the more ghoulish aspect of his scars.

“Man, I’ve see the pictures and vids of you, but I gotta say, you’re way grosser in person.” The Scared Man remarked, hands jammed in his pockets.

“Oh wow, it’s the weird hand guy,” The girl said excitedly, pumping her fists in the air repeatedly, as excited as a puppy. “You’re friends with my hero Stain, right?”

She threw up both hands beside her face, framing it slightly. “Let me join the League, I want to join your group.”

Shigaraki watched them with weary eyes, narrowing them behind his eyes, as he disintegrated the picture in his hand without them seeing it. So more people wanted to talk, they would talk. And hopefully, they wouldn’t talk about Stain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this one took so long. For once, I'm adding new bits outside of just Symbiotes, and that takes a lot to make it fit the general tone. So, first thing's first, characters.
> 
> I stuck with the theme naming of kinda hinting at a character's powers and abilities and backstory with their name.
> 
> Kinzokumure means "Swarm of Metal", due to his Quirk (群れ, Mure = Swarm, 金属, Kinzoku = Metal).
> 
> Jofubi Kuishinbo has 羃, Jo meaning power, 不備, fubi meaning Inadequate or defective, and the word 食いしん坊, Kuishinbo, meaning glutton.
> 
> City names likewise stick to Horikoshi's theme of Star Wars shout-outs. Koriba city was named after Korriban, Dromunda Prefecture after Dromunda Kass, and Kesh after the planet of Kesh.
> 
> Sanshiuta Oniko isn't exactly a new character, but he'll have a part to play in the League soon enough. He has links to another villain of the past, that's all I'll say.


	29. Answers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shigaraki finds increasing difficulty in expanding the League, as Izuku and Venom found themselves deeper in a web crated by the secret Agency.

Shigaraki glared at the two before him with a heavy-lided stare. He was fond of neither of these two coming to him, and for that manner, didn’t really like X either. He did nothing but empty their alcohol and eat more then any human being could. One was enough for him, but two willful little minions with attitudes and minds of their own, especially those who were inspired by that stupid Hero Killer, were no good to him. And especially not if his master didn’t vouch for them.

“Kurogiri, send these two away. These are the two can’t stand the most.” He snarled, pointing at them. “A brat, and a guy with no manners.”

Toga seemed confused by the vocal barb thrown at her, but Dabi gave no real reaction. X merely watched from his corner, unmoving and seemingly nonreactive, like a statue. Kurogiri turned to Shigaraki, shaking his head slightly in dismay at his ward’s behavior.

“Come now, they’ve come all this way, we should at least hear them out.” Kurogiri lectured him, before gesturing to Giran with the top of his head. “Likewise, our friend here has already procured us one new recruit, it would be disrespectful to ignore any others he sends our way.”

“I’ll be taking my usual finder’s fee, Kurogiri.” Giran quipped.

“What does Sensai say about this?” Shigaraki asked, glaring at Kurogiri irritably.

“X was the exception, something about him struck his interest, the rest is on you,” Kurogiri explained. “His words, not mine.”

Giran took a long drag of the cigarette, before exhaling the smoke and speaking. “Alright, if there’s no more of this, I’ll get introductions out of the way.”

He gestured towards the girl. “This cutie’s name and identity are under lock and key by the media, but she’s linked to several high-profile murders and killings from stabbing and bloodloss.” 

“I’m Toga! Himiko Toga! Life’s too hard, and I want to make it easier to live in this dumb world!” She declared excitedly, smile broadening to reveal several pointed fangs, resembling vampire fangs. “I wanna be Mister Stainy, I want to kill Mister Stainy, so let me join your group, Handy man!”

“I don’t get it, you some kinda weird fangirl or something?” Tomura asked, raising an eyebrow behind his Hand-Mask.

“She’s cute.” Sanshiuta chipped in, before Shigaraki silenced him with a scornful glare.

“Your goals intersect, you see, destruction and killing, she’ll be very useful.” Giran said, putting the usual Salesmen’s polish to his tone, before putting a hearty hand on the young man’s back. “And this guy, no high profile crimes, but he really has the Hero Killer’s will at heart, and the Quirk to match.”

“Is he another drunkard?” Shigarki hissed, shooting another angry glare at Sanshiuta, who merely held his hands up defensively.

The guy gave a heavy sigh, looking around the group apprehensively. “I don’t know about this. Are you really part of the Hero Killer’s will? I can’t see it if you’ll let this psycho and Edgelord join.”

Toga drew back in surprise, as Sanshiuta pointed an accusing finger at him. “You look way more like an edgelord then I do asshole!”

“Edgelord or brat, at least they gave me names to work off of, what about you.” Shigaraki snarled in annoyance at his arrogant attitude, as the guy merely shrugged at him.

“I go by Dabi for now.” He said simply, trying hard not to sigh at these stupid questions. Not when his own mission was so important.

“When I said names, I meant real ones.” Shigaraki remarked, annoyed.

“I won’t reveal it til I think it’s right.” He said simply, shrugging again, “But until then, I plan to make the Hero Killer’s will a reality.”

“You know, he kinda reminds me of one of the Heroes, can’t remember his name though.” Sanshiuta remarked, tapping his chin, deep in thought. Dabi gave him slight annoyed glare, before returning to his neutral expression.

Shigaraki stood from his tool, shaking in rage, as Sanshiuta and Kurogiri looked at him, falling in a terse silence. “No. Good. None of it!”

“Wait, Shigaraki, consider Sanshiuta’s position and...” Kurogiri began, before realizing fully how far gone he was.

“No, this is no good, you’re no good!” Shigaraki snapped, eyes wide and blooshot. “I’m not feeling this at all!”

An insane smile came to Toga’s face, shaking slightly in anticipation for the kill to come, as Dabi’s own eyes steeled themselves, the same cold fire burning in them, as Toga reached towards both of them, Toga producing a sharp, box cutter-type knife, as Dabi reached forward, before Kurogiri activated his ability, throwing his arms forward as fast as he could, the three throwing their attacks into the blackened void and mass of his unnatural body, as he threw them in random directions, Shigaraki’s hands harmlessly grasping into the air, as Toga’s knife stabbed into the floor behind Shigaraki, Dabi’s hand appearing above his own head, smoke and embers sparking above him.

After all of this, Giran merely blew out another puff of smoke, clicking his tongue slightly at the sight, as Kurogiri turned to his ward.

“Please, calm yourself Tomura Shigaraki.” Kurogiri advised calmly. “If we are to act upon your goals and desires, expanding our numbers is the only way.”

Kurogiri’s shadowy mass shifted and moved aside, rolling around to come all the closer to Shigaraki’s ear as he spoke. “This is our only chance, while we’re in the spotlight. You want that symbiote, correct? Then you need acceptance, not rejection, or anything we can use. Even what remains of the Hero Killer’s will.”

Shigaraki ripped his arms free of the portal Kurogiri had hastily projected before them all, stretching his fingers to and fro, as he pulled back in disgust. “Shut up.”

He pushed past them, Dabi and Toga looking slightly confused and rather surprised as he exited out the door they had entered through. Giran raised an eyebrow, not at all liking this attitude and how he was treating this deal or salespitch.

“Where are you…?” Giran began, before Shigaraki cut him off.

“I said shut up!” Shigaraki demanded, shoving the door open, before slamming it behind himself. The two hopefuls looked between themselves and the Recruiter, then Sanshiuta.

“Did that...happen...when you came to him?” Giran asked the mask-wearing man, taken aback by the behavior he had just seen.

“Kinda, the big boss stepped in to get me to join.” Sanshiuta replied with a shrug, turning away to pull down his mask and finish his drink, before turning back to them. “But he really doesn’t like the Hero Killer.”

“I’m not surprised. First All Might, then Stain, he’s been humbled many times by them.” Kurogiri explained. “Let him sort himself out. I think he knows what must be done. Give us one to two days, and we’ll have an answer for both of you.”

“That was weird.” Dabi remarked, looking over at X uncertainly. “Did he try and kill you.”

“No, but I think he wanted to.” He replied, robbing the area of his chin under his mask thoughtfully.

“I thought I was gonna die!” Toga remarked excitedly, Dabi shooting her a disdainful look, but saying nothing, as he thought over and processed everything he had seen.

He guessed there was nothing else to do. He just had to wait a little longer for his plans to come together.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Mina Ashido was, even after the test, still obviously upset and pensive over her loss. She sat in her room, completely shattered by it, running both hands through her messy hair as she thought over everything she had done wrong. It was hard to really think it over. She was a spur-the-moment kind of fighter. Looking back on everything, she had trouble even imagining what she could’ve done differently. Her morose thoughts were interrupted by three clear knocks at the door. She snapped out of her moment of self-pity, standing up slowly and heading to the door, through her somewhat cluttered room, passed the halls and into the living room, before opening the door.

Standing there, was her Uncle, this time dressed in a more low-key outfit form his usual Hero costume. He wore a long purple jacket, radiation symbols along the neck collar, and a chain hanging from it’s right side, his pants gold, and a ram’s head on his sleeves, close to the shoulders, and under these heads, running down the sleeves, was his name, ゴジロ, written in green letters.

This was his version of keeping things on the down-low and out of sight. She smiled slightly, as he stood erect and straight on the doorway, looking behind him for a moment, before clearing his throat.

“May I come in, Min-min?” He asked, his hardened voice a bit softer.

“My parents aren’t home.” She said, stepping aside as he stepped in.

Godzillo stepped in, not missing a beat as he continued. “I heard about your exam, hero talk and all that, and I’m sorry. Nezu’s a tough foe. A bit too smart for kids.”

“I...thanks, I guess.” She muttered tiredly, sighing to herself. She really didn’t want a pity party right now. “How did you hear, Mr. Aizawa said the results wouldn’t be released.”

“Family bonds, hero rank, that sort of thing.” Godzillo replied simply, keeping his voice even. “Aizawa trusts me as well.”

‘You two are a lot alike.’ She thought, as he stepped allow, looking around as she closed the door.

“I’ll make some tea, we have something to talk about.” He said, marching into the kitchen. “Do you want anything? Food, any other drinks?”

“No thank you.” She replied quietly, as he stoically made his way into the kitchen, seemingly scanning the room and area around him for anything out of the ordinary, before going in.

He had quickly set to work, as Mina plopped herself on the couch, adjust her tank top, and relaxing, as best she could anyway. Uncle G never visited the family unless it was a special occasion, due to his hero work being a little more dangerous then many others. The movies gave only a snap shot into just how dangerous gigantic villains could be.

Mina had some experience with that. The giant man from back in middle school, with claws for nails, and fangs that could slash right through flesh like nothing else…

“Finished.” He declared simply, producing two cups of steaming tea for them, snapping Mina out of her thoughts for a moment.

“Thank you.” She said, taking the cup from him. “So, why did you visit so out of the blue.”

He thought it over for a while, sipping his tea carefully, before setting it down. “Your friend, Izuku Midoriya, is still a part of the class right?”

“Yeah, he and Bakugou passed, and passed out.” She remarked, slightly confused about why he was asking.

“I’ve got my eye on him, he’s a good one, but there’s something you have to know,” He said, voice low and determined. “I think other groups have their eyes on him. I need you to get him this.”

He reached into his jacket’s inner pocket, and pulled out a clear cellphone, a touch screen with gray metal casing, and the Toho symbol on the back. Mina looked at him in confusion and slight horror, not at all sure where her uncle was going with this.

“I can’t get near him, so I need you to.” He said, holding out the phone for her to take. “This is scary, and dangerous, but I wouldn’t trust anyone else.”

“I don’t think I’m exactly hero material right now.” She replied a little glumly. “Isn’t there anyone else?”

“You’ve got the heart and mind for it. There’s no one I trust more as a hero.” Nakajima replied with a curt nod. “Remember, tests are hard before they become easy.”

She took the phone, balancing it in her hand for a moment. “So get this to Izuku.”

“And don’t say or do anything too obvious, understand?” He remarked with a nod, looking her right in the eye. “Once he opens it, and calls the first number, we’ll work it out from there.”

She nodded, give the phone a serious, focused stare, almost afraid to take her eyes off it. Satisfied, he went back to his tea, both taking a long drink from their cups, before Nakajima turned to Mina again, his expression slightly softer, and she could tell he was going to talk about the exam.

“So, what happened in the exam? Do you want to talk about?” He asked.

She groaned to herself, rubbing her forehead in embarrassment. She almost would’ve preferred this creepy, secret mission or whatever her uncle had gotten in then revealing just how useless she and Denki had been in the exam.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Izuku did as he always did on his way to class, stopping by Mrs. Chen’s restaurant to buy some snacks and enough to keep Venom pleased throughout the day. Both he and the owner had been slightly worried about his sugar intake, and worried he might develop diabetes or some blood condition from all of it, but Venom insisted that Izuku got the taste, Venom got everything else to maintain himself. He walked in, readjusting his backpack slightly as the bell jingled, Venom sprouting from his shoulder.

“Hello Mrs. Chen!” They both greeted.

“Hello Izuku, Hi Venom.” She returned the greeting with a small smile, looking up from her magazine, as Izuku went into the snack isle. “So, the usual, Venom?”

“Yes! More Chocolate!” The Symbiote commanded, returning to the insides of his body.

He brushed past a man, a larger, heavy-set guy, and stiffened, every hair in his body feeling like it was standing on end, as Venom growled within his ear, like a dog releasing a warning before attacking an intruder. He walked past him, trying to shake off the feeling, before the guy looked at him.

“Hey!” He said with a slight accent he couldn’t place. “You’re that kid from the Sports Festival right, Izaku, right?”

“It’s Izuku.” He corrected, turning to face the guy, and putting on a forced smile. Something about this guy creeped him out, but he couldn’t say what. Venom spoke within his ear, a half-whisper, half-snarl. “Get away from him, Deku.”

He may have been heavy-set, but his arms were muscular as ever, like a man who didn’t have access to the most advanced gym equipment, and had put on the pounds, but still had the physical frame and bulk to out-muscle others. He had a rough face, looking like he had been in several fights even before he reached elementary school, and scruff along his face, with short, perfectly cut black hair. He wore a black suit and red tie, a strange contrast to his rough appearance.

“That was a cool Quirk you had there kid, really otherworldly.” He said with a slight smile, holding a bottle of orange and pointing it at him. “I just moved here for a job, and I’m lucky it’s so close to UA.”

“Oh, that’s nice.” Izuku stated nervously, giving a nervous laugh.

“I’ll be seeing around. A lot.” He said with a grin, but something in his eye, in his tone, told Izuku this wasn’t some easy going, nice greeting to ignore. Either he was a villain with his eye on a potential foe, or worse, he was one of the Anti-Symbiote Taskforce agents.

He nodded, before turning and leaving for the counter to pay for his stuff, as the bell rang again, some one else entering the place. The pair barely looked up, as the mysterious man from before, and the newcomer made their way over to their location. Izuku was still on edge about the man from before, and the hood guy in the back, with the black sweat shirt covering most of his body and head and jeans was giving him the creeps as well.

“Hey Midoriya.” Mina said with her usual chipper tone, Izuku jumping slightly in surprise.

“Oh, Mina? Do you usually come this way?” He asked, pleasantly surprised to see her here.

“Not usually.” She replied lightly. But something how she said that surprised him, making him raise an eyebrow at her behavior, before she reached into her short’s pocket, and produced a phone.

It had a familiar logo on it, that Izuku couldn’t quite place, even as Mina handed it over to him, lowering her voice. “My uncle wanted you to have this.”

Izuku jumped slightly. Nakajima-sensei had sent Mina to give a phone? Why? He already had one. He wouldn’t question it, his teacher had a reason for everything, and it probably factored into the Anti-Symbiote Agency. She nodded a bit, before making her way out the door just as quickly as she had come.

This morning was off to a strange start already, and as Izuku finished paying for his snacks and treats and left the place, he had a feeling this would just get stranger still.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
He had saved the phone and kept it in his backpack, secured since he left Mrs Chen’s shop and got changed into the school uniform. He wondered why Nakajima-Sensai had sent him this phone, and sent it through Mina? What could be so dangerous now about appearing in person that this had to be done? He’d find out tonight, when he answered, but for now, he had to simply wait and go through class and focus on whatever studies lay ahead. It probably would be for the best if he forgot about it for now.

When he got to class and was speaking with the other classmates, Kirishima, Mina, Sato and Denki arrived, their moods darkened and seemingly crushed, Mina slightly better off, but still looking rather down from the defeat at Nezu’s hands, or paws. It was hard not to pity them on some level, especially since Summer Training School with Aizawa didn’t exactly sound like a fun time.

“I mean, it looks bad, but there could be a twist of some kind.” Midoriya tried to council them.

“As if! If we failed written exam and the practical, we’re super screwed!” Denki yelled, jamming a finger in Midoriya’s face. “The only thing worse would be if our scores were longer then a monkey’s.”

“There are things worse then bad scores.” Venom muttered within Izuku’s head. After the psychic scream and the strange guy at Mrs. Chen’s store, he was still jumpy as ever.

“I’m kinda stuck with you guys, me and Mineta.” Sero remarked. “I got put to sleep early on, and didn’t count any points for me.”

“Why was I trouble though?” Mineta demanded angrily, raising his fist angrily to the air. “’Inappropriate actions towards fellow students’, like what?!”

Every female student in the room looked at him in absolute disgust and shock, not at all believing Mineta could be so blind to everything and anything he was doing. Truly, he couldn’t be so ignorant of why he was being punished. Before anyone could say anything about him however, the bell rang, and Aizawa immediately threw open the door and stepped in.

“That was the bell, sit.” He ordered quietly, everyone instantly finding their seats. He made his way to the front, quietly shuffling his papers and such, before he finally cleared his throat. “Morning. So, about your exams, we had some failures.”

Before anyone could react however, that some mischievous, cat-like grin appeared across his face. “But everyone goes to camp!”

“Aw, isn’t that sweet Deku?” Venom hissed with a dark chuckle. “It’s strange, on my world, those who fail their tests and rights of passage get eaten.”

‘Is there anything your kind don’t eat?’ Izuku mentally remarked, shuddering at the thought.

Venom thought over his words for a moment, before replying. “A few things, not many.”

“All of you passed the Written exam, so well done,” Aizawa explained, looking over the scores. “Unfortunately, Ashido, Sato, Kirishima, Kaminari and Sero failed the Practical exams, and Mineta will also be punished for past behavior along with them.”

“Why me?!” Mineta demanded, before Aizawa’s capture lashed out and wrapped tightly around his mouth.

“For what you did in the locker rooms I should have you expelled.” Aizawa said icily, glaring daggers at the dwarven student. “One more incident with any of the female students, and I will follow through on that.”

Mineta quieted down, as the capture scarf warped away and slide back around Aizawa’s neck.

“So when you said you’d crush us...” Ojiro

“It was another Rational Deception. I needed you all to give it your best,” He remarked, his toothy grin appearing again. “This is, after Training Camp, and all will need it.”

Aizawa shrugged to himself, before he went to his usual serious expression again. “Anyway, those that failed will be getting supplemental lessons at camp. Probably worse then the Summer School, if I’m being honest.”

Those who had failed, and Mineta all looked stricken and terrified by those words. 

“I’ll be passing out pamphlets, with lists of materials you’ll need and what to prepare for.” Aizawa said, holding up a small stack of papers. “Pass them down.”

“We’ll have to prepare the chocolate and tator tots for a long trip.” Venom advised, Izuku nodding as he took his list and looked it over.

After class had wrapped up, the students had gathered to go over their lists and come up with a way to get all of the listed materials.

“So much materials to pick up and get, this will be a big trip.” Iida remarked, adjusting his classes slightly as he looked everything over.

Hagakure spoke up excitedly, clapping her hands together. “Guys, guys! What if we all went to the mall tomorrow. We don’t have class, and we can get everything down together.”

“It’ll be a good way to relax a bit.” Tenya agreed.

The others agreed, except for Bakugou, who, for once, had been quiet and almost invisible himself throughout the whole class, only snapping at Kirishima when he suggested he come along. “Like I’d waste my time with that stupid shit!”

“What about you Todoroki?” Izuku asked innocently.

“I’m visiting someone in my off days. Sorry.” He replied awkwardly.

Izuku nodded in understanding. He had a feeling he knew who he was visiting, but wouldn’t say anything. Venom likewise, for once, seemed to recognize the situation was delicate, and kept his usual quips and remarks to himself.

And so, the next day came, and Izuku and rest gathered at the shopping mall, with the exception of Bakugou and Shoto, who attended to their own business in private. Venom, while still a bit on edge, had relaxed slightly. The feeling of a Symbiote upset while bonded to it could best be likened to having a knot in your gut, but the feeling spreading from the stomach to the chest and just about everywhere else. He still didn’t trust any strangers near him, and was on the look out for Riot or another Symbiote.

As they made their way there, with enough cash from Izuku’s mother to get everything, Venom had begun to relax and seemingly uncoil himself from Izuku’s insides. “I apologize for how jumpy I’ve been.”

“It’s fine, you’re worried about others hurting us.” Izuku replied quietly, trying not to look like he was talking to himself. “We have to be on the look out for a lot lately.”

“I usually don’t get this upset, not since the campaigns against the Cry’skari.” Venom remarked. “But among the Imperium’s forces, desertion is considered a challenge to your leader, and a battle to the death must follow.”

“So Riot would be within full right to kill us.” Midoriya replied, stepping through the front doors to the mall.

“Our team had two other members, at one point, Frenzy and Viriome.” Venom explained. “Both tried to defect, and both fought Riot one on two, and were destroyed with ease.”

“Then that’s why we’ll be at a training camp.” Izuku replied, as he waved to his friends, who had gathered in a large group in the center of the mall. “Relax, everything’s fine. No Riot or any other Symbiotes here.”

“Right! Right.” Venom agreed quietly, as they joined the rest. He was not sure of Izuku’s confidence and bravado in the face of things, but wouldn’t put a damper on things.

When he got there, everyone was quickly gossiping and talking about what they would need, cutting back and relaxing for once, even those who failed. After everything that had happened, with villains out to destroy society from the ground up, Government agencies trying to dissect him and grab his Symbiote and keeping his Quirklessness a secret from others, being able to just laugh and kick back was relief for him.

“I’ll need a large duffle for this.” Jiro remarked, gesturing to Momo to show the breadth of the bag.

“I think we’ll be able to find something.” Momo remarked.

“I’ll need some music, perhaps the Rolling Stones, or the Kinks?” Tsuyu mumbled to herself, putting a finger against her chin.

“Good choices, you can come with us for the duffle bag,” Jirou remarked excitedly. “I know their best albums.”

As the three hurried away, the others began to divide into small cliques and groups, heading into random directions to pick up what they would need for the trip there or just staying there for the summer. They all filtered out, soon leaving Izuku and Venom alone, along with Uraraka, both stunned and surprised for a moment, as they collected their bearings.

“Wow, they cleared out fast.” Izuku remarked, stiff as a board.

“Yep.” Uraraka said, swallowing, obviously just as nervous.

“Tell her how you feel!” Venom demanded, sounding a little excited. “Sing your love for her from the highest building. Let her know she belongs with us!”

“So what do you need, Uraraka?” Izuku asked, deciding on a more subtle approach.

“Pussy!!” Venom hissed in rage. His romantic advise, like that for the battle, had no weakness.

“Just some bug spray.” She remarked with a blank expression, as her checks turned bright red, as though something truly embarrassing started to come to mind. “Bug….spray….”

She remembered Aoyama’s words, stiffening slightly at what he had said, before turning and bolting away, one arm folded over her face. Izuku barely had time to react as she ran away from him, hardly able to process what he was seeing and why Ochako could be running away from him.

“Am I the bug?” He yelled as she sprinted away, faster then anyone, even Iida could manange.

“Maybe if you weren’t such a pussy, she wouldn’t run from you.” Venom suggested wryly. He had never seen docility win in romance in his millions of years, but, again, he influenced his hosts to be more aggressive, so his stance on things could be biased, slightly.

Izuku watched her leave, gobsmacked, blinking several times in confusion. Venom’s battlefield advice was often highly immortal and illegal, and his romantic advice even worse, but had he said or done something wrong to set off Ochako and send her running. Not that he was trying to be romantic. Izuku Midoriya would’ve very passionately (And red-facedly) stated he didn’t see Ochako that way. All the same, he was now left alone, despite the crowds that now surrounded him. Everyone had vanished into the crowds to look for cloths and gear they would need.

His thoughts about what he had done wrong when talking to Ochako where cut through by another voice calling to him. “Hey! You’re that guy who messed himself up at the Sports Festival!”

He started in surprise, giving a weak smile to the man in the large, enveloping black hoody. ‘That’s UA for ya, always putting you in the spotlight.’

Venom was unusually quiet, almost fearful, a cold shiver emanating from the Symbiote into the host. The newcomer continued talking, walking up to Izuku and throwing an arm around his shoulder far too quickly for someone he just met. “And back at Hosu, you went at that Hero Killer real hard man. You’re something else. Almost out of this world!”

“You sure know a lot!” Izuku managed with a nervous laugh, sweat running down his forehead, his face going red.

“Run. Get away from this man.” Venom said simply, as he stiffened at his voice. Izuku was frozen in place, not at all sure what to make of the mental command. “Move!”

“I can’t believe we’d meet after all this. You, me and the other.” The man remarked with chuckle, as Izuku’s fear turned into sheer terror. “To think we’d meet after all this time.

‘This uncanny presence.’ Izuku thought in fright, frozen like ice. ‘This...this Unnamed Feeling!’

“Something must be helping you along. Like I said, something out of this world.” The guy remarked, placing a hand over Izuku’s throat, his blue-white hair hanging over his eyes. “But, were are my manners? We’ve haven’t seen each other since UA!”

Izuku looked up in anger and fear at the scared and pale visage of Tomura Shigaraki, who grinned down at him, his smile marred by the scar along his lips. “Let’s get some tea and chat, shall we, Izuku Midoriya, and his little other?”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Minutes Earlier  
Shigarki stood outside the mall, having spent his time following Izuku Midoriya ever since he left Dabi and Toga. Kurogiri and Shinshiuta had tried to contact him, but he had no time for either of them, especially the latter. Shinshiuta wasn’t with the two, but he was a Stain groupie, and Shigaraki needed time away from those freaks to think and gather his thoughts. His master had encouraged him to find the answers, but Shigaraki still couldn’t understand things.

He walked among the people, disgusted by how easy they could relax and hang back, gossip and bicker among themselves. People, at this moment were dying and fighting for whatever reasons, many not far, probably in this same city or street, and they were smiling and laughing as it all happened. But what he couldn’t understand the most, outside of this need to ignore everything, was their fascination with Stain.

A shout broke up his thoughts. “Hey, look, Costumes like the Hero Killer!”

“And alongside the Jet Black!” Another young voice laughed, pulling out his phone to take a picture of his body with the stripe-like mask of Stain.

‘How does he get people to follow him,’ Shigaraki thought, shaking his head, as he watched them for a moment, before continuing on, trying not to draw attention. ‘Even people who couldn’t care less for your ideals?’

He thought about that Toga girl, who seemed more obsessed with killing and bloodshed then following Stain’s ideals. ‘She’d prefer to let there be carnage I guess.’

He couldn’t question such logic, Shigaraki himself wanted plenty of that. But he couldn’t figure out why, why so many went to Stain and not him. They both destroyed, ruined and ravaged whatever they desired, that got in their way. Why was Stain so much better then him when it came to gathering followers then?

It was, in this thought, in the middle of the mall, that Shigaraki spotted Izuku, alone and now isolated from the rest of his peers. Since yesterday, Shigaraki had tracked him, from his forays into Mrs. Chen’s shop, to as far as he could get to UA, to try and map out what he was doing. Now, Izuku was in the perfect spot, and Symbiote or no, Shigaraki wouldn’t let him get away without getting what he wanted.

“Relax, pretend I’m afraid. No scene or struggle, and no bringing out the Symbiote.” Shigaraki whispered into his ear, like the voice of death softly speaking to him. “Just pretend I’m an old friend and all. Breath naturally, got it?”

Shigaraki’s hand remained on Izuku’s throat, all but the middle finger pressed tightly against him. “One last finger is all I need, and you’re throat would start to crumble from the inside out. You’d be dead in minutes.”

“This is a populated area, full of witnesses.” Izuku managed through his own fear. “Venom could jump into anyone and use them to kill you, he could jump into you and dissolve your organs.”

Shigaraki laughed, his smile widening to inhuman levels. “Maybe, but look at all the people running around. Could you stop me before I touched 20, 30 people?”

Izuku could see young couples talking and holding each other close, children running to their parents, a pregnant women and her husband with their first child. He froze for a moment, unsure if he wanted to try and take Shigaraki. His first instinct was to fight, no doubt aided by the Symbiote’s pressence, but could he finished Shigaraki in time? Could he defeat him before dying or stop others from collapsing into rotted dust as well? Could he live with the consequences if he failed?

“Izuku, let me take control, let me fight him!” Venom demanded.

He thought for a moment, before slackening, calming himself. “No. Let’s talk.”

Shigaraki’s eyes twinkled for a moment, as he grinned. “Good, let’s sit and talk then, good chum!”

Shigaraki had lead them over to a place by the fountain in the center of the mall, away from the prying eyes of the various mallgoers and shoppers. Anyone nearby thought they were simply some strange friends catching up again, and gave them a wide berth. Shigaraki had been talking the whole time as they sat down, keeping his voice low and out of earshot of anyone nearby, mostly complaining about what he was currently dealing with.

“So anyway, I just hate everything.” Shigaraki muttered in agitation. “No Symbiote, no organization that does what I want, nothing.”

“Symbiote?” Izuku said in shock, still remembering how he had known about Venom’s homeworld and everything else.

“You answer my question, I answer yours.” Shigaraki said simply, grinning from ear to ear. “Like, about this stupid fucking Hero Killer everyone is all up about.”

“He’s not with you?” Izuku asked, confused. The Nomu had come with the Hero Killer’s attack, and done so much damage with him, it was hard to see them as separate incidents.

“That’s how the media spins it, but I just gotta roll with it.” Shigaraki replied with a gruff sigh. “But that’s the thing, the Hero Killer gets all this attention, all these fans, all this clout, but I’m doin’ the same thing he is, I’m destroying what I don’t like, so why does no one look at me the same way?”

Izuku had to admit, he found the question almost comical in a way. Shigaraki genuinely didn’t seem to understand this his mindless destruction wouldn’t appeal to anyone with legitimate interests in society. He almost wondered what had gone into producing such a manic little manchild so divorced from reality.

Still, his fear and terror of being dusted, and everyone else with him, kept him from laughing out loud at him. Any little thing could set of Shigaraki, and Izuku was not eager to try and test his patience. So, for the sake of himself and everyone else around the mall, he thought over his words.

“Simple, he has something that’s realistic to reach for.” Izuku replied bluntly, glaring at Shigaraki right in the eyes. “I may disagree, but at least I can understand what he aims for. His devotion to All Might, choosing to even save me. It feels real.”

He kept his glare on Shigaraki, despite his fear, as he continued. “You, you just feel like you don’t believe anything, that I can’t believe in anything you put forward.”

Shigaraki looked at him for a moment, regarding with a cold, impersonal glare, Venom still yelling in Izuku’s head to run and try and put distance between themselves as much as possible. Izuku ignored this, remaining where he was, despite icy glare from Shigaraki putting the fear of death into him.

Now, he just needed to see how he reacted.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Far and away, an agent of the Church watched the two, taken aback by what he was seeing. He was just an average Japanese man, One of many millions, and one of many thousands employed by the Church of New Darkness. He slurped away on his drink, watching the exchange with Shigaraki and Izuku. He had been tasked with watching the budding villain, while his peer had been tasked with watching the hopeful hero, but it looked like their paths had intersected. He clicked on his earpiece, not at all sure how to proceed.

“Supreme Prophet, your advice?” He asked, after laying out the whole situation in a low voice for Al’hazred.

Kitab seemed to consider his words for a moment, going silent for a while, as the Agent thought of repeating his question. “Wait, simply watch them.”

“Supreme Prophet?” He asked in confusion, not sure if this was the right answer. Izuku was as central to the Prophecy as Shigaraki. If they killed each other now, how would Knull’s will be seen.

“Leave them. The visions show no violence between the two yet.” Al’Hazred ordered sternly, the Agent nodding in fear, even over the phone. “Let them talk, listen, and observe. If we know what their future goals are, we can predict their actions better, but until then, leave them be.”

He took a deep breath, before nodding to himself. “So sayeth the Hand of Knull.”

Elsewhere, an Agent of the Anti-Symbiote taskforce also watched the two, his hair in a buzzcut, his eyes covered in shades as he watched the two closestly. He was dressed in a fine suit and all, but carried a bag of gifts with him, looking like an out of touch business man buying gifts for his child. He was more silent, watching the two with keen eyes and waiting for either of the two to make a move that his superiors had told him was worth investigating. He carefully smoothed back his slick black hair, narrowing his eyes at the two.

And, above them all, was Ochako Uraraka on the second level, fanning herself in embarrassment at how she had acted towards Izuku. “All because of what Aoyama said.”

She shook her head in embarrassment, looking over the railing, watching everyone milling around and throughout the mall. For a moment, something distant, far from here called out to her for a moment. She couldn’t exactly hear it, but could feel it. Something yellow and inhuman, no body of it’s own, desperately calling to her, before she shrugged it off and focused back on Deku.

“He’s probably all confused back there, after I ran off and left him there.” She muttered to herself, keeping her voice low to not attract attention. “All because I got flustered.”

She thought for a moment, nodding slowly, before turning with a new, determined glint in her eye and confidence in her step. ‘I’ll go back and say sorry. It’s not like we’re shopping together or anything. Yeah, we’re just two heroes that have the same goal and deeply admire and respect each other. Nothing more, nothing else to worry about.’

She continued on her way, making her way back to Deku with a new confidence in her step. It wasn’t like she liked him or anything. This was just two friends supporting and pushing each other along. Again, her vision swam for a brief second, something yellow and alien calling to her for a brief moment, before she shoved the feeling away and marched onwards. She just had to apologize to Deku for confusing him, and move on. Everything was normal. Just two friends supporting and pushing themselves to be their best.

She turned and made her way back, hoping Deku would be easy to find in such a crowded and chaotic place.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Izuku, for his part, had been frozen in place, partially out of fear, partially out of a fearful desire to see how Shigaraki would react to what he had been told about himself and the Hero Killer. With such a villain, Izuku had no clue how to react, but Venom continued to shout at him to let him take over and fight. Every step of the way, the host had resisted and refused, driving the Symbiote mad with hate and fury against the one holding them hostage.

Shigaraki for his part was still, for several minutes, merely glaring at Izuku with a cold, impersonal glare, before laughing to himself. It was manic, chilling nose, dry like a bone being cracked apart in the desert, his eyes wide with insanity as he looked out at nowhere.

“It all makes sense now, like a puzzle coming together.” Shigaraki muttered with an insane grin. “Like all the dots in my head have become connected.”

His grip tightened against Izuku’s throat as he shook his head, laughing a while longer. “I’ve figure it out. Why the Hero Killer, why you and your Symbiote, why it all annoys me so much!”

Izuku struggled to breath, as Shigaraki continued on, ranting more to himself then to Izuku. “That stupid All Might, always having that stupid grin, telling these idiots all around us that they can take it easy, that they can leave everything else to the heroes, as long as he’s here!”

Izuku desperately reached for Shigaraki’s fingers, his own hands beginning to turn black, Venom tired of waiting for permission or consent, and beginning to morph right here and now in the mall. Shigaraki grinned madly to him, smiling so wide, Izuku wondered if his face would split, before he whispered.

“Hey now, don’t struggle, you don’t want these people dying do ya?” Shigaraki taunted, gesturing back to the oblivious crowds all around them. “Remember, I’d share something of mine, some knowledge I’ve got, if you shared yours. Don’t you want to know how I know about Venom’s...history?”

He stopped, frozen in midstruggle, his arms still covered in the rackish black fluid of Venom’s biomass, but the Symbiote and he had stopped completely, forgetting everything else at the mere idea of getting answers from him. Shigaraki’s smile turned into a smaller, but still highly satisfied grin.

“Four years ago, my master brought back a Symbiote in a jar, silver and black.” Shigaraki explained quietly, grinning form ear to ear. “His name...would you like to know?”

Venom froze in terror, as Shigaraki let the suspense hang for a while. Izuku felt he already knew who it was, but was terrified to even think the name, as Shigaraki finished. “Riot. His DNA enhanced our Nomu, and I was supposed to get him, but I haven’t. I’ve waited four years to bond with it, and still no Riot.”

Shigaraki leaned in close to Izuku’s ear, holding back insane laughter at his expense. “But you know what, he’s angry, and he’s coming, Venom! He wants you back in line. Don’t get too comfy.”

Terror ran through Izuku’s body, as he felt the waves of panic riding from his connection to Venom, the symbiote frozen in absolute terror at the sound of what Shigaraki had said, every word driving Venom to a deep, primal fear.

“Man, all it took was one name to put the fear of god in your little Symbiote,” Shigaraki noted with a grin. “I don’t know about the other two, but Riot definitely is looking you to put you in your place.”

Venom took control of Izuku’s throat and mouth, speaking for the first time, the voice that came out watery and distorted, sounding like it came from a dream, but mixed between Venom’s deep and commanding tone, and Izuku’s normal voice. “So your master knows about my kind’s arrival?”

“The strike team, the invasion, your Emperor, everything.” Shigaraki replied. “What do I care though? I just want to destroy!”

His thoughts and eyes seemed to go elsewhere, turning away from Venom for a moment, as Izuku remained in his grip, neither he nor the Symbiote sure of what to do. Now that he was distracted, Venom was sure he could destroy Shigaraki with ease, even if he had to sacrifice maybe one or two hostages to do it. But the doubts and terror still lingered, the idea of Riot, the Team leader that had always lorded over him, now back, confirmed to be alive.

The only thing more terrifying for Venom would’ve been facing his child Carnage again, or the Emperor of Klyntar coming here himself to conquer the world, or Knull rising from the dead.

“Dek..ku?” A familiar voice said, breaking through both their thoughts, Shigaraki and Izuku turning to see Ochako standing there, starring at them in confusion and fear. “A friend…? No...Not at all..,”

Her expression was as terrified as Izuku’s helpless and fearful at the sight, unsure of what to even do now. “Can you...get off him?”

Izuku found his voice, yelling out to her. “It’s fine! There’s nothing to worry about!”

Shigaraki, however, had gotten everything he wanted. He was no mood to deal with one wannabe hero and a Symbiote. He released him and threw up both hands, as though to surrender, giving an innocent smile despite his scars and chapped skin. “Hey now! I didn’t know you had a friend, my mistake!”

He stood up, readjusting his hood, as he glared down at Izuku. “Remember, follow me, and I get mad. And you know what happens when I’m mad.”

He began to walk away, hands in his pockets, before Izuku called after him. “Shigaraki! What does All for One want?! What does he get from Riot and the Symbiotes?”

Shigaraki stopped for a moment, looking over his shoulder, his expression now called and disinterested, as Ochako reeled back in shock and realization at the name. “How am I supposed to know? Whether it’s Riot or me, he wouldn’t tell.”

Shigaraki began to disappear into the crowds, giving a final warning. “You should be worried yourself, Venom. Next time you see me, it’ll be Riot and I. And you both die.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Ochako had called the police right at that moment, and despite their fast arrival, and that of several heroes, Shigaraki had disappeared. Indeed, it was not hard. Dressed in that simple hoodie and jeans, he merely melted away into the crowds, beyond what others could see.

The dozen or so agents of the Church, interested in watching Izuku and those who would share in the glory of Symbiotes, many in his class, vanished from sight, not wanting to attract any police attention, vanishing shortly before any police could arrive to lock down the area and take witness statements. Their information belonged with Supreme Prophet Kitab, not with some doughnut-eating simpletons.

Shigaraki grinned to himself as he walked along through the parking lot. ‘So this is what my master wanted me to figure out. My own convictions.’

He reached into his pocket once he reached an abandoned alleyway, pulling out of the hands, Father, that went over his face. ‘All I need is to use the Hero Killer’s ideals as stepping stones to my goal. Once I get the Symbiote myself, all of society goes to dust!’

The cops had locked down the area quickly, taking witness statements and information they could, looking into security cameras and images taken, but after he hit the crowds, Shigaraki had vanished like a ghost. Detective Naomasa had arrived on the scene quickly, picking up Izuku to take him to the Special Taskforce’s headquarters, the center of all police activity that would deal with the League of Villains and any attacks they launched.

Venom was, after the fear and terror running from him from Shigaraki’s words, not restless and bitter for action. “Why are we cooperating with the Blue Wife-beaters, we should hunt Shigaraki and hang him by his intestines! Chew what little meat he has off his bones.”

‘You seem oddly aggressive now, what gives?’ Izuku, shaking his head as the car continued. ‘Riot scares you. It’s alright to admit it.’

Venom seemed to take a deep breath. Izuku wasn’t sure how he managed that, but finally he spoke. “I have lived in fear of him and most of my kind for a while. I’m a runt. One of the older ones, but a runt all the same. This has been my one chance to do whatever I want, what we want, and I fear it being taken away.”

Izuku wasn’t sure what to even say. To him, Venom had been often as hot-blooded Bakugou, and somehow, even more eager to kill people, if that was even possible. Now he was here admitting he was terrified of his superiors. Izuku had known of course. Venom stiffened and panicked at the idea of facing Riot, now he couldn’t imagine how scary that was for his Other.

He could, actually. Their connection gave him a clear picture of just what Venom was going through. His puffed up performance and all was just trying to hide from the truth. ‘If Riot does come, remember, we don’t face him alone.’

Venom seemed satisfied with that, shrinking back into a corner of Izuku’s mind, relaxing his hold a bit. “I’m not sure it will work, but I trust you.”

After arriving at the station, Naomasa was quick to bring him to his office, and begin questioning him and going over everything he and Shigaraki had talked about. He wrote down everything, never taking his eye off Izuku as he listened intently and noted everything with the precision of a seasoned investigator.

“I’m sorry we couldn’t bring him in.” Izuku stated near the end. “My Quirk is upset about it too.”

“No it’s no problem, either of you.” He said without missing a beat. Izuku figured he had dealt with Quirks with minds of their own before, or just knew not to expect the usual with Quirks. “You kept your cool, kept him from rampaging, and didn’t get yourself or others hurt. You did great. Most people couldn’t do that.”

Despite his conciliatory tone, Venom was still unsatisfied. He had let his own personal fears endanger his host, his Other. Venom wanted revenge, wanted to cut lose and let Shigaraki and his League have it. Just talking about the pale creep made Venom agitated again. He had to do something. Symbiotes don’t just sit and talk. They act.

Tsukauchi had lead them back to the front, where someone was waiting for them. Izuku was almost surprised to see All Might here, and in his thin, skeletal form, wearing loose dull yellow pants, and a baggy shirt. Even if he could transform, here and now, the idea of him being here, when a Villain could appear at any time, was a big worry, but Tsukauchi didn’t seem to mind.

“Hey, Midoriya, Tsukauchi!” He called, waving to them.

“He came all this way to see you in person.” Tsukauchi quietly explained.

All Might gave him a pat on the head. “I was worried to death over ya kid.”

“Why’d you come to see us All Might, aren’t you at risk?” Midoriya asked, looking around worried.

“I’m an Old man now, but I’m not that old.” All Might replied with a laugh. “I doubt Shigaraki would’ve followed you here anyhow.”

Izuku nodded, narrowing his eyes a bit. Perhaps Venom’s fear was starting to rub off on him. He thought over Shigaraki’s words, of just how bitter and resentful he sounded. He wanted to ask All Might something a bit more personal, when a car came to a stop and parked nearby, and out came Godzillo, in his human form, stepping out of the car, and removing his hat, looking to and nodding to Tsukauchi, before going straight to Izuku.

“Kid, I told you to stay outta trouble,” He said with an easy smile, before narrowing his eyes at All Might in confusion. “Who is this?”

All Might seemed to forget he was in his skinny form for a moment, before bouncing back. “Oh, yeah, Toshinori Yagi, All Might’s secretary and agent.”

“Interesting, why are you here then?” Nakajima remarked, putting a hand on Izuku’s shoulder protectively.

“All Might’s got his eye on the kid, for something important.” Toshinori replied nonchalantly.

Nakajima seemed to consider these words for a moment, before nodding. “Understandable. He has my number, and my agency’s. We should arrange a meeting, since we both have our eyes on Izuku.”

“That would be great. All Might would love that.”

Izuku wasn’t sure whether or not Nakajima could see through All Might’s deception or not. He was hard to read, his body language and facial expression shielding everything from Izuku and Toshinori. Tsukauchi seemed to pick up on something Midoriya could not, nodding slightly to himself, as if something had just been confirmed.

“Mr. Nakajima, why did you show up here, aren’t you busy?” Midoriya asked, hoping to change the subject.

“I’ve got a break from movies, and I’m still a hero, who has to look out for a student.” He replied simply. “And I wouldn’t let some dork with a hand fetish harm ya.”

“Mister Nakajima, I would like to discuss some things with you, if you’re going to help us deal with the League.” Tsukauchi cut in with an apologetic smile. “I hope you don’t mind.”

“Not at all.” He replied, patting Izuku on the should and leaning into his ear for a moment. “Call me on the second phone when you get home.”

The two watched him and Tsukauchi turn away, talking quietly, as Toshinori nodded slightly. “You’ve got an interesting guy in your corner now.”

“Two.” Venom remarked in Izuku’s mind, as he turned to the number one. “All Might, has there ever been anyone you couldn’t save?”

“Plenty.” All Might replied without a second thought, his voice heavy with guilt. “I’m just one guy trying my best.”

He looked up into the night sky, the stars and city lights twinkling away. “It’s why I stand tall and smile, kid, I gotta inspire everyone, and light the way for them.”

Tsukauchi and Godzillo seemed to have finished, returning to the group, the latter seemingly satisfied with everything, as the Detective wrapped things up. “It seems like he’s becoming a bit of a sore loser. Every time he’s appeared, something has gone south for him.”

“It looks like your ride home is here.” Naomasa remarked, as Izuku’s mother came from the front door, crying heavily. It appeared Izuku’s entire set of adults dedicated to watching out for him had arrived.

“Izuku...you have to stop doing this. Your old mother’s heart can’t take it.” She sobbed, tearing raining from her eyes like a water fall. The escorting police officer with her looked as thought he had seen this before, and pulled out and calmly pulled out a box and handed another tissue to her.

“It’s fine mom, I’m fine, no one hurt me.” Izuku said, before Venom appeared from his shoulder. “I told you, I will not let anyone harm your son. His protection is my sole desire.”

Godzillo stood by, putting his hat back on, after carefully adjusting his hair, and running two fingers across the bill. “Mrs. Midoriya, I’m one of his teachers from internships. I’ve been keeping my eye on him for a long time.”

She looked up at the gigantic man through teary eyes, nodding. “My team can’t come and go too easily. But I’ll protect your family all the same. You have my word.”

He turned and left for his car, nodding to them both one last time, as Izuku and his mother headed to the police car that would drive them home. Tuskauchi and Toshinori had withdrawn to behind a pillar to discuss the rest of their business, as the Midoriya family departed. Naomasa turned to All Might, nodding slightly to him.

“The brighter the light, the darker the shadows.” He remarked. “Do you want to bring Nakajima into this? A Kaiju-grade Quirk would be a whole lot of help.”

“If Midoriya is going to be my successor, I’ll have to see about it.” All Might said with a nod.

“He’s hiding something else though. We should be careful.” Tsukauchi remarked, tapping his chin slightly. “But the League’s the big thing now.”

“All of this in three months.” Toshinori remarked, shaking his head tiredly. If One for All burning out didn’t force him into retirement, then teaching was bound to do him in first.

“It will be worth it, once we catch All for One, once and for all.” Tsukauchi remarked, putting his hands on his hips as he looked across the city. “Because whatever’s in those Nomu, I don’t think is human. Something else is at work here.”

All Might raised an eyebrow at his friend’s statement, as they both looked out across the city.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Kinzokumure sat behind his desk, shades draw tight over his eyes, as he leaned back in his chair, elbows on his desk, Jofubi standing in front of him at attention, hands folded behind him. Kinzokumure listened intently to the other agent’s story, a wry smile spreading across his face.

“So, Venom was part of a team, like the others in Ogasawara.” He remarked, holding out a hand, as it broke apart into several metallic insects, flying and scuttling off to complete some tasks, before he turned back to Jofubi. “So, you’re sure Riot is a Symbiote, not another villain?”

Jofubi nodded. “Sure as pie, sir. He talked about bonding, acknowledging their homeworld, and spoke of Venom’s bond with Midoriya in familiar terms.”

“If only Shigaraki realized what these beasts were like,” Kinzokumure remarked, tapping his remaining fingers against the desk. “This’ll almost take out the League for us.”

“Should we move?” Jofubi asked, slightly uncertain if he was following his superior’s ideals completely. “The League has at least one Symbiote, and are experimenting with them as we do.”

“And get in the way of Detective Tsukauchi? All Might and other heroes?” Kinzokumure asked sarcastically, looking out from the top of his sunglasses, giving a good look at his red and black eyes. “Let them do their thing, and we will do as we always do. Clean up and gather Symbiotes, remove witnesses, and prepare for the worst.”

“What of Mina Ashido?” Jofubi asked, not sure he’d like this one question. Symbiotes and adults were one thing, one wasn’t human, the others were, well, adults, but this was a child. “I believe she’s at least somewhat involved in Nakajima’s and Venom’s little back and forth.”

“The Boss has given us something interesting, just recently in fact. A Variant, he calls it.” Kinzokumure remarked, pulling up a picture and handing it to Jofubi. “When the time comes, Ashido will join the test subjects. Telling Nakajima, in no certain terms, we can reach his family, when he forgets these alien monsters are a bigger threat then anything he’s dealt with. That they aren’t friends.”

Jofubi nodded, and grunted uncomfortably. Hurting a kid was dirty business, but a job was a job, and that’s why he signed up for when he became an agent.

“Observe Midoriya in his school going forward, place the trackers, and be ready,” Kinzokumure ordered. “Shigaraki and his gaggle of idiots will deal with themselves. Midoriya is our number one target.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Back when Venom had released his Psychic scream, the three Symbiotes on Ogasawara had reacted to the sound and sensation, trying to escape and reach their peer, even in the plexiglass that held them.

It was not the only thing that had detected Venom’s desperate yell.

Deep below Ogasawara, down below anything else, all the labs, the training areas, the holding cells, was the deepest part of the island, one of the first parts built, everything coming in and built around it. Nakajima had made his way down there, this is his second time, down here with one of the old villains of legend.

“They saw you move, on the security, when Izuku had his little spat.” Nakajima said absent-mindedly, hands jammed firmly in his pockets. “I don’t know if you can move in there. I don’t even know if you can hear me, but I know you’re alive, again. You won’t hurt my family or friends, or my student. I’ll see to that personally.”

Nothing but the slight hum of machines could be heard, as he glared down the moving creature. “I don’t know why the Symbiote would cause this, this reaction, but you will never escape.”

The room was near-ice cold. It would’ve chilled the blood of anyone, but he didn’t even react to it, starring down the massive blue-white block before him, cold mist dancing off it’s surface. Deep below, the outline of a man, or what appeared human, was frozen within, muscular and powerful in build. Nakajima stood, staring it down for a moment, before turning and leaving. He had to see Mina and Izuku soon, and had no time to speak to what may or may not have been dead.

He turned and left, his long coat billowing behind him, as the lights turned down low and flickered off. As he left, the frozen being’s left eyes snapped open, casting an eerie, low gold light across the entire facility, glaring out at the back of the Monster Hero, unearthly hate expressed in one mere eye, enough radiating from it to melt all of the ice around it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, there's another chapter put out. I'm excited that we're getting closer to the Muscular Fight, and All For One's big appearance, but I'm also excited to be using Riot as the main (symbiote) villain rather then Carnage. Of course, you can see the tags, Carnage will be here, and a major threat, but I want Riot and Venom's hate and animosity to reflect their hosts, and also, Riot seems like a great character to write. A conquering imperialist who regards hosts as little more then sheep to be used and slaughtered as he pleases.
> 
> It's a side to Symbiotes you rarely see, despite them having a whole Imperium to rule over, and I want to reflect that attitude that produced them in Riot.
> 
> Anyway, some of the dialogue foreshadows Symbiotes other characters will be bonded with in time. Nothing too major, but if you've read your still you'll know.


	30. The Camp

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Venom and Izuku got on a nice Couple's retreat for the week.

Izuku’s night was not over yet, and he still had one last call to make before sleeping in. He was exhausted, perhaps it was just Venom helping him feel drained, or just everything he had to go through, but this was going to be fun. After retreating into the safety of his room, he pulled out the secret phone Mina had given him during class, and dialed it.

“Maybe he’s trying to set us up with Mina.” Venom remarked, to which Izuku simply ignored him. His romanitc prodding was getting a little much now, even by Venom standards.

He dialed the number, and waited a moment, before Godzillo answered. “You’re good to go, correct?”

“Yeah, thanks for checking on me.” Izuku replied with a nod.

“You’re a hero worth keeping around.”Godzillo replied simply. “Even without Venom, you’ve got miles a heart going for ya.”

“So what is this about?” Izuku asked, looking around to make sure his mom wasn’t listening in. “The secret phone, not giving it yourself.”

“I was to watch you at the police station, while the spy, Jofubi, contacted his superior.” Godzillo explained gruffly. “Even then, they would be watching me.”

“Why? Outside of the mad science, why are they so focused on me?” Izuku whispered in fright, hands shaking slightly.

Godzillo took a deep breath, sighing to himself. “They don’t think you’re...you. They think Symbiotes, when they bond, take over completely, and leave nothing, that he’s imitating you.”

“What, like The Thing?” Izuku said in a panic.

“I hate that movie.” Venom remarked in his head. “Isolated, forced to survive among a bunch of savage humans armed with flamethrowers. Terrifying idea.”

“Venom!” Izuku demanded in annoyance, not wanting him sidetracking the conversation anymore.

“Sorry!” Venom hissed apologetically.

“Jofubi is already watching you. Heavy-set guy, rough looking.” Nakajima described.

“I may have already run into him.” Izuku said with dread, thinking back to the man in Mrs. Chen’s shop. “What do we do? Hunt him down?”

“No, the Agency is ready for that.” Nakajima remarked, taking a heavy breath, “Keep the symbiote’s aggression down. You don’t want to give them a reason to slice you open and experiment on you?”

Izuku nodded slightly, as Godzillo continued. “Currently, everything is fine and stable. But I’m hearing whisperings of something going south. Just rumors, but people are talking about a Cult of some kind, and with the Nomu having Symbiote DNA, probably from Riot, things are going to get nuts.”

“So we wait for the League to do something?” Izuku asked nervously, rubbing some sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand. 

“We will stop it, as Heroes have to. Whatever works within the frame of Quirk laws.” Godzillo replied bluntly, making sure Izuku understood. “But the Agency will be trying to get their hands on Nomu. They’re a source of curiosity, and the head doctor they have wants some.”

“Wonderful.” Izuku replied, shaking his head.

“Once whatever the League is doing falls down, that’s when we hit the Agency.” Godzillo replied, as Izuku heard him start to go through some papers. “Shigaraki won’t win. He’s too impulsive and like a mad child. His and the Hero Killer’s Disciples will lose.”

Izuku grunted in reply, not sure what else to say, before Godzillo spoke again, his tone softer. “You’ve done amazing work going forward, and truly become a Hero like no other, license or no. How you handled this situation was great. Now get some sleep, and be ready for your classes. Saving the world doesn’t excuse bad grades.”

Izuku chuckled slightly to himself. “I...I got it sir.”

It was almost a silly request, but Izuku would need it. Whatever this Agency was, he couldn’t wait to be done with it and get back to a relatively normal life. Hopefully, by time Shigaraki showed himself again, his League, and the Agency would both be easy to defeat.

With that done, he and Godzillo both hung up, as Izuku went to check on his mother, and make sure she wasn’t worried out of her head still.  
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The next day was a tense and silent class, everyone on the look out and as worried as ever for another attack by the villains or their proxies. Showing up at their most vulnerable was bound to wear on morale. Aizawa seemed to sense the tense situation, looking a bit perturbed over how much energy was lost from his students. He went to the front, producing the pamphlets and papers from the planned Summer Camp.

“Due to the recent incident, we are changing the plan,” Aizawa declared. “We can’t risk a leak. You’ll find out where we’re heading when we arrive.”

“But I already told my parents where I was going!” Sero protested.

“Exactly why. They can’t control where the information goes after that.” Momo replied, as Izuku shifted nervously in his seat, almost feeling like this was his fault on some level.

“A slight annoyance, but not the end of the world,” Venom chided. “Relax.”

“This is on you Deku. You have more then enough power, why didn’t you do anything?” Bakugou snarled in front of him.

“Bakugou, that’s enough. After what Izuku went through, I won’t have you tearing him down like that.” Aizawa said sternly, fixing a cold glare on Bakugou, as he thought darkly to himself. ‘I see even after being forced to work with him, very little’s changed.’

Bakugou fell into a contemptuous silence, but said nothing more. Izuku did not want to broach the subject any further, and everyone simply dropped it and moved on with a nod from Aizawa.

After gathering in the auditorium, and hearing a speech from Nezu, First Semester came to an end. It seemed so odd to Deku, after everything he and Venom had to endure, that it was this simple little speech that ended everything. So, without much else after that, he, Shoto and Iida left, discussing what was left to plan for and do, as they passed by Shinso again, walking alongside Aizawa. Izuku almost couldn’t believe he would see him again, giving a surprised wave to him.

Shinso gave only a curt nod, before continuing to follow the 1-A teacher away, leaving Izuku slightly surprised by the whole thing, before turning to his friends to continue their talking.  
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Summer Break, first day of the Training Camp. Izuku wasn’t sure what to expect, Venom’s head sprouting from his shoulder, looking around the area with a scrutinizing glare at the buses and everything else around them, seemingly trying to strategise about something. Izuku couldn’t exactly figure out what was going through the Symbiote’s mind right now, but he’d leave him to do his thing.

“Curious! I’ve heard a large number of 1-A, the supposed superior class, has to do remedial courses during Summer Camp!” Monoma’s voice cackled to them, as the rest of Class-1B gathered for their own buses. 

Venom narrowed his white eyes and growled in annoyance. “Izuku, if you let me eat this gnat, I won’t ever get in the way of your heroics again. I won’t even bite a hand off a thug, I swear upon Knull’s bones.”

“Venom, behave. We’ll be there for a week, don’t cause any trouble.” Izuku chidded, looking around to make sure no one else heard that.

Fortunately, Kendo stepped in as always, chopping Monoma on the back of the neck, and knocking him out, before dragging him off, calling off to 1-A. “Sorry about that!”

“At least someone gets to partake in violence.” Venom grumbled like an angry child, as Izuku rolled his eyes.

“You can be such a child.” Izuku muttered, as Tenya yelled for them to get onto the bus in single file.

Soon, 1-A had taken to the road, driving along to the secret training camp location. As soon as UA was behind them, the bus had devolved into chaos, Kirishima trying to put on music, Bakugou already yelling at everyone to, as he put it so eloquently “Shut the fuck up!”, and just about everyone playing some games or gossiping to pass the time, as Mineta slurped down as much as the large bottle of coke as he could.

Aizawa looked behind at the entire mess with a tired, resigned expression, and sighed to himself. ‘Let them, some last minute fun won’t hurt any, either way.’

The hour on the road seemed to fly by, though by time it came to an end, Venom had begun act antsy upon the whole ordeal, wanting desperately to stretch their legs and possibly punch something and eat someone. Izuku wasn’t sure about the latter two, but getting out and walking around after so did feel great. He sighed contently, as he and the rest of the class stepped, well, most did, Mineta had made the mistake of emptying the whole bottle on the ride over, and ran out, desperately looking for any sign of any bathroom to empty his bladder.

The ‘rest-stop’ was a stretch of dirt and gravel by a cliffside, on the side of a highway no way seemed to use. Either it had been cleared ahead of time, or it was just that rarely used. Whichever way it went, there was only an old, beat up light blue car also on the overlook, which hung over a mountainside landscape, forests and smaller mountains stretching as far as the eye could see. It was quite the scenic value. Even Venom was rather surprised by the beauty of it.

“I keep forgetting your world is not so ugly after all this time,” Venom remarked quietly within his head. “Between this and the Sunsets at Dagobah beach, I don’t want this to end.”

“No reason for it to end.” Izuku remarked pointedly, trying to keep his voice low so no one could over hear them.

“Right, right.” Venom said hurriedly. 

“What kinda rest stop is this?” Kirishima asked, looking around. “A little sparse.”

“And where’s Class B?” 

“We stopped here for a reason, so just sit back and wait.” Aizawa ordered gently, hands in his pockets and his head low, as always. He looked around for a moment, seemingly waiting for someone to show up.

“Hiya Eraserhead.” A women said, as he and the rest of class turned to see the newcomer. A grin came to her face, as another woman joined her.

Both were tall and athletically built, the first having brown bob-cut hair, the other long blond-hair, both wearing skirts, vest, furred boots, headgear resembling the top of a cat’s ears, with small, seemingly useless bells around their necks, and paw-like hand gear.

“Rock on those sparkling gazes!” The first declared.

“Surprisingly cute and cat-like!” The second, added as, they both struck poses near each other, finishing together with “We’re the Wild, wild Pussycats.”

Aizawa seemed unbothered by the strange pose and all, as did the small child behind them. He wore a gloomy, agitated expression, but a baseball cap with two small horns on the front. After a moment, the 1-A teacher spoke. “These pros will be helping train you and get you ready.”

“Oh wow, the Pussycats! I can’t believe it! They’ve been pros since we were kids!” Izuku said excitedly, things finally clicking into place, as his own fanboyisms finally surfaced again. “They specialize in rescue and mountain operations.”

Venom had appeared from his shoulder, looking slightly confused. “And the cat motif? Are they David Bowie fans?”

“Actually, yes! Cat People is where I got the idea!” Pixie-Bob declared, surprised and happy someone had deduced that reference, before her expression darkened, glaring down at Izuku. “Though your math is wrong, I’ll let it slide.”

“Math?” Izuku and others asked.

“I’m 18 at heart.” She said pointedly, a note of desperation in her voice.

“That’s just sad.” Venom said aloud, as several other students mentally repeated the same thing.

Mandalay, meanwhile had gone to the edge of the overhang, looking over the area for a moment, before point to an area of the forest, just below one of the smaller mountains. “Our lodgings will be right there.”

“Then...why did we stop half way?” Ochako asked worriedly, as realization began to dawn on her.

“Maybe...we should head back to the bus, heheh.” Sero said with a nervous laugh, edging back there.

“Let’s see it’s 9:30 now, so they should wrap up around…?” Mandalay began to do the mental math. “Noon?”

“Noon sounds good.” Pixie-Bob remarked, placing both paws to the ground.

Realization began to dawn on a number of the students, Mina turning to several. “Run, back to the bus!”

Izuku sighed, resigned as ever to the insanity of the school. Venom swipped back into his body, as the Symbiote covered his body in black biomass for whatever insanity was coming their way. Aizawa turned to the kids running, almost looking a bit apologetic for a moment. “Sorry kids, training’s already begun.”

The ground shook and rumbled, as Venom’s eyes widened in shock, the plates and stones beneath splitting and reforming for a moment, before, finally, the earth threw forward into the ravine below, throwing them all high into the air, in an avalanche of stone and earth, the students struggling to see through the mess and land safely.

Mandalay went to the railing again, smiling. “This is our private territory, so feel free to use your Quirks!”

Venom carefully glided through the air, using his biomass tendrils to latch onto the largest rocks and stones, yank himself towards them, before jumping off from those and heading to the ground, making sure to avoid and dodge anything flying through the air that could harm either him or his host. The deluge hit the ground, shaking everything around them, as Venom landed ahead of the group, ground shaking from the impact, as the Symbiote looked around at the forest.

The landing had disturbed the birds, who flew off in fear, the ones further away, calling to each other in worry, but otherwise nothing seemed off.

“You’ve got three hours to reach the lodge on foot, through,” Pixie-Bob stopped for a dramatic moment. “The Beast’s Forest.”

“Beast’s Forest, what is this, DnD?” Kaiminari complained.

“UA seems to have a lot of areas like this.” Iida noted, looking around the forest’s large, impossibly large trees, covered in moss off the sides and branches. “But no time to complain, we had better move.”

Mineta darted off from the group, still holding himself desperately. Venom’s white eyes widened slightly in surprise. “How did you hold it through that?!”

“I’ve held it for too long! I’m finding myself a tree!” Mineta declared, sounding as desperate and terrified as he had when fighting the USJ Thugs and Midnight.

“Don’t run off, you fool! Does the Beast’s Forest not sound like it might be dangerous?” Venom barked in annoyance.

As Mineta tried to find a tree far away from the group, the ground rumbled and shook with stunning force, as a large creature, the size of a pick-up truck rounded a corner. It’s hide was covered in rock and moss, it’s four limbs ending in three, human-like fingers and claws. Two massive tusks sprouted from it’s face.

“There’s an actual Beasts here?!” Kaminari and Sero shouted in surprise.

Koda began to make his way to the front, to try and take control of the creature, before Venom threw a hand forward to stop him. “Wait, this isn’t an actual creature. There’s no organs under it’s body.”

The good news was that Mineta no longer had to pee. The bad news was that this creature was now raising one of it’s paws to utterly pulverize him.

Venom sprang forward, roaring his battlecry, and smashing into the side of the creature’s head, rocks and debris flying off from the impact, the beast stumbling for a moment, before collapsing, the rest of ti’s body returning to earth and rock soon after. The ground trembled, as three more beasts rose from the Earth, lumbering to intercept the students.

Back at the overhang, Pixie-Bob was careful to monitor the situation through her advanced headset and Commlink, as Mandalay stepped away to discuss the situation with Eraser. “Pretty fast pace you got going.”

“I’d normally save this for second year, but Villain’s are ramping up and getting more aggressive,” Aizawa explained. “I need to get them those Provisional Licenses as soon as possible.”

“Then we’ll do our thing as best as we can.” Mandalay replied with a knowing nod, all to aware of what Aizawa was worried about.

“We leave the rest to you Pixie-Bob.” Aizawa replied dryly, as she grinned to herself in excitement.

“Gladly!” 

“Come on Kota, let’s get back to the Lodge.” Mandalay said gently, as the boy merely grunted in annoyance, and followed her away.  
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By 5:20, the students had managed to stumble their way out of the forest, all except Venom, who strode confidently forward, rubbing his hands together to get the dirt off, and grinning from the metaphorical ear to ear from the fight. Everyone else was largely bruised, battered and worn down. Iida’s pants had torn and ripped apart from the overuse of his engines, Bakugou’s arms were shaking and trembling hard, holes in Mina’s uniform had opened around the shoulders and stomach from overusing her acid, and everyone looked ready to drop. Venom looked almost confused by the display, before remembering he was beyond even most Quirk-using humans, and had a few million years experience on some kids who had just started training.

“Hey, you finally made it!” Pixie-Bob said nonchalantly, giving a light chuckle.

Venom shrunk back and away from sight and into Izuku’s body once more. Mandalay gave an apologetic smile to the rest of the group. “Well, you kinda missed lunch, sorry.”

“What happened to three hours?” Sero asked, hands on his knees as he groaned in pain.

“Sorry, that’s how long it takes us.” Mandalay replied sheepishly. “But you did better then any of us thought you would.”

“We really are the best.” Venom remarked in Izuku’s mind, chuckling with pride to himself.

“You four,” She said, pointing to Izuku, Iida, Bakugou and Todoroki. “You four reacted to my Earth Beasts that best out of all of them. Very impressive. Has past experience boosted your reaction time by any chance?”

“So if our egos needed to boasted any further,” Venom chuckled. “She has no idea what we’ve done to hone our strengths.”

Izuku waited patiently, before her mood seemed to change entirely. “We’re gonna have so much fun in four years!”

Izuku and the other three brought their arms, keeping her paws from getting to their face, reeling back in terror. Even Venom seemed terrified, yelling in Izuku’s head. “Deku, she’s scaring me!”

Aizawa stepped up from the bus, obviously have woke up from his nape, rolling his shoulders slightly, as he stepped besides Mandalay. “Hey, has she always been like this.”

“She’s worried she’ll never find the right guy.” Mandalay whispered apologetically.

Izuku wasn’t even sure how to react to that, before his eyes noticed the kid from earlier that traveled with Mandalay all the time. He raised an eyebrow slightly, before speaking up. “Hey, whose kid is that?”

“Oh, this is Kota, he’s my nephew.” Mandalay explained, gesturing to him. “Come on Kota, you’ll be hanging with them for a week, might as well get used to them.”

Izuku was the first to step forward, Venom bristling slightly within his body. “Do we have to deal with this small child, Deku? They’re annoying and tiny.”

Izuku ignored him while trying to put on a pleasant smile for the kid. “Hi, I’m Izuku Midoriya, I’m with the hero course at UA, how are you…?”

He never got to finish the question, before stepping forward and swung a powerful, earthshattering blow right into Izuku’s region between his legs. He stiffened and let out a strangle, groaning yell of pain, grabbing his injured part, and sinking slowly to his knees. Venom’s voice in his temporarily lost all focus, not even speaking Japanese or any human language Izuku recognized. Iida rushed to his downed friend’s side, looking on helplessly.

“You fiend of a child, striking a man in his scrotum!” Iida yelled in indignant rage.

“adqqjktuweydoohadas!!” Venom screamed within Izuku’s head. Apparently, even an alien Symbiote wasn’t immune to the horrific pain of getting punched in the nuts.

“Kota, how many times do I have to tell you to not punch strangers in the crotch!” Mandalay yelled angrily at him as he turned and stomped off.

“I can’t abide any losers acting like wannabe heroes!” He declared, glaring back at the entire class with an expression rage and disgust.

“Abide, how old are you?” Mina asked in complete disbelief.

“Kid’s got guts.” Bakugou said with a smile, chuckling to himself.

“Reminds me of someome.” Shoto muttered.

“What the hell does that mean!” Bakugou shouted, turning in rage. “You shut your fucking mouth, Half-and-half bastard!”

“Enough. Midoriya, are you alright, Venom can heal that right?” Aizawa asked, his cold demeanor sounding a little more worried then before.

Midoriya held up a single thumbs up, shakily getting to his feet, Venom still shrieking in some barely indescribable mess of word salad.

“Alright, the rest of you get your bags in, and get ready for dinner.” Aizawa ordered, gesturing towards the inside of the building. “After that, you’ve got an hour to relax and wash up in the hot springs, and then you go to bed.”

Needless to say, after lugging in their baggage and such, and the trek through the forests and mountains earlier, without much food, every student was as ravenous as Venom usually was, Symbiote or no. By time they had all sat down, the students tore into the food like ravenous Symbiotes themselves, leaving little to leftovers. Izuku had almost grabbed an entire salmon in the center of the table he was at and scarfed it down whole, before he was stopped by the rest, but otherwise, he and the rest had relaxed to spend the rest of their time eating.

Pixie-Bob had warned them that this hospitality was a one day thing, and after that, they would have to cook their own meals. But what attracted Izuku’s attention, was Mandalay’s own actions during the meal. As she brought refills of fresh tea to those who wanted them, Kota had been asked to bring the vegetables box into the kitchen. His general demeanor and attitude towards even his aunt caught Izuku’s attention, who looked over curiously, right as he tore a large piece of meat off and chewed on it.

Venom growled within his head. “You want to get involved and help the Ballcrushing brat, don’t you?”

‘Yes.’ Izuku answered immediately as he thoroughly chewed on the chicken piece. ‘Got a problem, Other?”

Venom sighed in defeat, the movement within Izuku’s body reminding him of someone shaking their head in expatriation. “No, do whatever you want. You and your bleeding heart. I’m just along for the ride.”

‘Don’t like kids?’ Izuku thought, as he swallowed and grabbed his bowl of rice. ‘I know the whole ‘eat or be eaten thing’, but have you tried anything else?’

“In the time I have existed, I sired 20 other Symbiotes, but only Carnage survived.” Venom replied, a note of sadness in his usually bloodthirsty voice. “They either died in battle, to rivals, or, rarely, my own claws.”

He continued, a note of regret in his booming voice. “But, Carnage had one child of her own, I tried to take him on, even named him. Toxin. I had hopes for him...”

“What happened?” Izuku said aloud, not realizing what he had done, as the others ignored him, too focused on eating.

Venom seemed to hang on the moment for a while, as though unsure or unwilling to answer, before growling. “The failure was mine.”

Izuku blinked for several moments, even stopping his food, before nodding in understanding. Something had happened. Either this ‘Toxin’ was dead, or had parted ways from Venom, but it was something that bothered the older Symbiote. After a moment, Venom spoke again, changing the subject to something else.

“The kid has his own issues. Just let sleeping dogs lay, as they say.” Venom insisted, almost a little too aggressively. Izuku narrowed his eyes, but kept eating, trying not to think about it. “Whatever happens to him, who cares?”  
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After that, the remaining time was spent in the hot springs just outside the main facilities, kicking back, relaxing and relaxing within the waters. It felt great, after getting out the uniform, to ease in and relax. Venom enjoyed the feeling, surprisingly, the heat not bothering him, a feeling of ease and relaxation coming over both of them.

“This is great.” Venom purred softly, as all the tension and stress melted off of Izuku, and felt especially good on his hand covered in burn scaring. “I have rarely been able to enjoy such hot springs in my travels.”

“The food was whatever for me personally. No, what I’m here for is far more important.” Mineta mumbled to himself, inspecting the wall that separated the boys and girls’ hot springs.

“Mineta, what are you rambling about?” Izuku asked in annoyance, before groaning to himself. He knew what he was doing.

“Mineta, what you’re suggesting violates the truth and reputation of the class and school!” Tenya protested, gesticulating in his usual manner. “Do you want to be expelled!”

“It’s only an issue if I get caught!” Mineta declared with a confident grin, plucking the balls from his hair, and scaling up in the time it took them to blink.

The climb continued, Tenya yelling for him to cease his shenanigans. The entire class had largely resigned themselves in disgust that he was about to pull his usual shenanigans, hoping he would be stopped before he could do too much damage in the situation. Mineta had reached near the top, the apex of the wall separating the boys and girls, ready to achieve his singular dream of seeing the girls in all their naked, bountiful glory, when Kota shot up from the top of the wall, glaring down at Mineta with the usual cold contempt he displayed. 

“If you want to be a hero, try being a good person first.” Kota remarked, slapping him in the face, and sending him flying off the wall.

He seemed to hear something, turning to look behind him, before stiffening a moment, later, his face going pal, as he teetered over and fell from the wall soon after Mineta. Izuku felt his mouth drop in one second, then in the next, felt himself jumping and flying from the springs and into the air, carefully intercepting and holding Kota carefully in Venom’s clawed hands, as the Symbiote landed on it’s feet with a booming crunch, the ground cracking underneath his weight.

The good news was Kota was safe, though strangely bleeding from the nose. The bad news was that Iida had caught Mineta. Face first.  
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Venom had made his way all the way back to the central facility, gently tapping the door with his mighty, beefy fist. After a moment, Mandalay opened the door, her paws and headset removed, as she jumped slightly at the sight of the creature, his long tongue slithering out of his mouth for a moment, before slipping back in between his fangs.

“Kota was almost injured.” Venom reported simply. “We couldn’t let him fall.”

He did not wait for her to answer, pushing into the room, lowering and slouching slightly to step in, before straightening himself up again, and marching to the couch, sending a large tentacle outwards from his shoulder, grabbing a pillow and placing it within couch, and gently laying Kota down. Mandalay had disappeared into the kitchens, running water and grabbing a towel wordlessly. Venom shrunk and melted away from sight, the blackened mass shifting and regrouping itself into a pair of jeans over Izuku’s legs.

“We put him up there to watch out for one your classmates.” Mandalay explained, as she pulled a chair up next to the unconscious Kota. “He must’ve been terrified of falling.”

“I’m just glad he didn’t get hurt out there.” Izuku remarked. He thought back to Venom’s generally flippant attitude about Kota at first, writing him off, but now saving him.

“You reacted fast.” She remarked, before noticing his attire. “How did you get dressed so fast?”

“The jeans? Those are Venom.” Izuku answered, as they turned into the usual blackened, tar-like slime in appearance, then shifting back into a texture more like jeans again.

She seemed slightly confused for a moment, before simply shrugging it off. She had seen plenty of strange Quirks, and if it could morph Izuku into a gorilla-like titan of muscle and fangs, then taking on the appearance of normal cloths wasn’t too strange.

“Is Kota...alright? Like, he seems to really hate heroes.” Izuku asked, worried. “I just have never seen anyone act like that towards heroes before.”

“Right. I guess it does stick out. A lot of people have a rather apathetic attitude towards heroes,” Mandalay explained, figuring she owed Izuku such a private secret after he saved Kota. And got nailed in the groin. “He’d probably look up to them too if things had been better at home.”

Izuku gave a questioning look for a moment, looking confused for a moment, before Pixie-Bob appeared from the door way, also having discarded her paws and headgear, and carrying a platter of two drinks.

“His parents were Mandalay’s family, they were heroes, Pros, who died in the line of duty.” Pixie-Bob explained softly. “An honorable death of any hero to die in the line of duty.”

“His parents faced off against a villain and injured him horribly defending civilians.” Mandalay explained, placing the damp, warm towel against his forehead. “But for a young boy just growing up, it’s much harder to understand. It felt as though his entire world had shattered and they had left him behind.”

Venom rumbled within Izuku in annoyance, still not liking being here. He had saved the boy and brought him to safety. To him, this felt like a needless amount of whining and whinging about the past. Why was Izuku then, forcing them to sit through this failed battle.

‘Humans are always too close to their parents. It weakens them in the face of loss.’ Venom thought to himself with contempt.

“I don’t think he likes us, but we’re the only family he has left.” Mandalay continued with a sad nod. “But he has no one else, so he just has to cooperate.”

She gave a heavy sigh, looking away for a moment. “To him, heroes are just strange, nasty people he can’t understand.”

She took a deep breath, as Venom growled within his head. “Listen, I get it, losing family members is bad, but it isn’t our business. Can we leave?”

“You should probably get moving.” Mandalay remarked after a moment, standing from her chair. “You’ll need to get ready for bed soon.”

Izuku nodded, partially to Mandalay’s statement, partially to Venom’s, as he turned and left. His thoughts were focused on Kota. How wrong it was for him to hold Heroes in contempt, but also on everything else he had seen and heard. Shigaraki’s open contempt for All Might, beyond just a normal villain’s, to Kota’s own distrust and apathy towards the hero system. He wasn’t sure what to think of this all.

Luckily, Venom had decided to finally voice his own opinion. “A system of governance and enforcement is bound top produce outliers and outlaws. You are dealing with one yourself. The Agents of the Cosmos and the Imperium of Kylntar both view me with scorn and derision. Simply accept it and move on.”

“You’d leave him with no help or anything?” Izuku asked, as they left the building and made their way back to the Hot Springs to pick up their things.

“Yes.” Venom replied without a moment of doubt or hesitation. “This family business is nothing of ours to worry about. Getting involved can open old wounds and cause trouble for everyone.”

Izuku was silent for a moment as he continued walking along. He chewed on Venom’s words, unsure of how exactly to take it. Venom may have had a slightly point with wanting to keep a low profile or not open old wounds for people, but Kota needed their help, and it felt wrong as someone who wanted to be a hero not to give it.

With nothing left for the night, Izuku went back to gather what remained of his things near the hot Springs, and get ready to sleep.  
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Izuku had slept great. The moment his head had hit the pillow, Venom had infused with a cocktail of chemicals and such that completely knocked him out. By time 5:00 AM rolled around Aizawa and the rest of the Pussycats were waking up everything, and, in response, Venom pumped him full of another batch of chemicals to get him up and moving.

With the exception of himself and Shoto, everyone else was dragging themselves out of their beds to meet Aizawa in the clearing, groggy and dazed as ever, hair disheveled, most of them looking barely alive.

“Good morning students, today the real training camp is getting started.” Aizawa greeted to them, looking as grungy and worn out as usual. “Ideally, you’ll emerge from this strong enough to get your Provincial License.”

His next words froze Izuku’s blood right in his veins, as he gulped deeply. “I won’t sugar coat it. We have a growing force of Villains causing more and more trouble. Through this, you can hopefully be ready for it. So stay sharp, and work hard.”

He pulled something from the folds of his baggy cloths, tossing it to Bakugou. “To start, Bakugou, throw this.”

“The strength test?” He muttered, looking at Aizawa with slight apprehension.

“At the beginning of the School year, you had 705.2 meters, so let’s see how much stronger you’ve gotten.” Aizawa stated, standing back to watch the show.

“Oh, this is to see how much we’ve developed!” Mina said excitedly.

Bakugou began to wind up his right throwing arm, stretching and preparing for the coming throw. Finally, with a deep, throaty growl, Bakugou threw the ball with all his might, and explosive fire blooming to life from his palm and firing off into the skies.

“Go to hell!”

The students flinched from the rush of hot air and smoke thrown out from the throw itself, as Aizawa held up the measuring device, and, after a few seconds, it let out the beep to know it was finished. With that he turned it to the students for all to see.

705.3 Meters.

Bakugou looked up in anger and confusion, the rest of the class beginning to talk and chatter among themselves over the developments.

“You’ve all been through a lot these past 3 months, your minds and techniques have grown, but your bodies have only grown a bit.” He explained, putting the device back in his pocket. “This training will be focused on improving your Quirks and bringing them up to par.”

He held up a finger, as his face bent into that mischievous, almost sadistic smile of his. “This training will be so harsh you’ll wish you were dead. Try not to die, and we’ll be fine.”  
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“The master really is so smart.” Shigaraki remarked, as he carefully placed the next card on the house he had made. “I spent hours trying to figure it out, and he knew in an instant.”

“I trust the squad is ready?” Kurogiri asked.

“Sure, the Master seems to think so.” Shigaraki replied.

They were alone now, Shigaraki still healing from his shoulder injury, but after he had disappeared, he returned far more cheerful and relaxed then usual. Dabi, Toga and Sanshiuta were sent to a location provided by Sensei, while more recruits rolled in, some, like Magne and Muscular, powerhouses with lengthy rap sheets, while others, like Spinner and Mustard, were just eager to get in the fight and prove themselves to Stain’s ideals. Kurogiri didn’t ask, but was satisfied Shigaraki was no longer in such a foul mood.

The door opened, Giran taking a long drag and puffing out. “I’ve heard back from the Union today, you can expect the delivery tomorrow. It won’t look like much, but I promise quality in all things.”

“Apologies for the odd request.” Kurogiri remarked, as Giran simply, grinning from ear to ear.

“We’ve some high hopes with you Shigaraki. If your League steps into the spot light, it means more criminals and scum on the sidelines will step up to the plate too,” Giran declared, circling with one hand, the cigarette leaving ash and smoke in it’s wake. “Crime pays well. Brokers like me are gonna be rolling in cash.”

“Well, we’ll be sure to keep you busy.” Shigaraki remarked.

“Excellent.” Giran remarked, taking another drag, as he stepped out from the shop.

Shigaraki looked up, grinning madly behind his mask. “The pieces are place, let the games begin.”  
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The Team in question was waiting patiently for the right time. It was a musty, old place, barely lite and largely forgettable from the outside. Hence, no one was going to cause them any trouble, as they got ready and prepared for the mission to come.

Dabi sat upon a number of abandoned crates, while Sanshiuta leaned against one of the support pillars, while a massive titan of a man stood aside, covered in a hastily put together cloak that covered most of his face and body, except for the horrific scar that marred the left side of his face. The other was short, looking like a Middle School student more then anything.

The doors opened, as Toga came running in. “Hey, hey! Special delivery from Tomura. He wants us to take these on our mission.”

“Good, we can start with the fun then!” The Large man remarked with a devilish grin.

“Let’s wait a little longer. Remember, Tomura said nothing too flashy.” The Middle Schooler remarked, carefully adjusting the white gloves he wore, as Sanshiuta shot the Cloaked man a disdainful glare.

“Hard to believe. He acted like a spoiled little brat when we first met,” Dabi replied with a grin, standing from the crates. “Now he’s taking charge.”

“And we reveal ourselves, right? We’ll burn the whole system down, right?” Sanshiuta asked, tapping his bone-like finger claws together excitedly.

“Definitely. We’re pulling those false Heroes down from their shinning pedestals.” Dabi declared, a smile spreading across his pale face. “And in doing so will create a bright new future for this world.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter. We're approaching the next big fight and one of my fav moments in the show/manga. We're also getting close to Riot finally entering the story in a serious manner, as a long term foe.
> 
> Anyway, I also think the coming chapters with Kota and Izuku/Venom will be important, not just to get Venom to soften up around kids, but for a future event with him.
> 
> In case I don't update in time, Happy Holidays to all, and stay safe.


	31. The Vanguard Strike.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some very rude characters ruin the nice vacation Izuku and his Other were so enjoying.

“Your strikes lack discipline. You are merely tapping them with your hands.” A low, gravely women’s voice hissed within the halls. “If you are to triumph in the coming battles, you must hit with intent!”

The hall here was largely the same as the other areas held by the Church of New Darkness, ornate, with the columns and walls adorned with the snarling visages and face of the Klyntar upon them, the surrounding parts of the buildings resembling the flowing, shimmering form of the Symbiotes themselves, giving even this training area a strangely organic, surrealist look to it.

Within the halls were numerous young ones, some no younger then ten, some as old Izuku and his classmates, a few a little older. They were position in front of punching bags, targets and other things, most dressed in practical training outfits, black and red, as the figure approached down from the platform overlooking it all, her feet carefully stepping down and hitting each step as she made her way down. Her toes were not the normal human ones, rather being cruel, curved black claws, attached to dark green scales, the first toe of each a large, wicked blade, twitching slightly with every step. The rest of this stranger was hidden under the heavy black cloak of the other Church members, shimmering with the star-like pattern against the inky blackness, her hands carefully hidden within the long sleeves.

She made her way down, claws clicking against the cold, hard floors. She pulled her hood back, revealing a scaled face the same as her toe claws, dark green, and almost reptilian, with feared plumage around the back of her head, reptilian yellow eyes flickering from one student to the other.

“Your strikes are with the arms, not the core!” She hissed, gesturing to her abdomen with a clawed hand. “Your arms can be weak, the core supplies the power, throwing your whole strength into it.”

Above, on the platform, overlooking this, was Kitab and one of the other Prophets, the strangely tall and lanky Charles Whately, and a figure dressed simpler, in a heavy set of brown robes and hood.

“The training of our Adepts is welcome, Brother, but why call us here so out of the blue?” Charles asked, as Kitab merely watched, engrossed in the show. “Is this because of the Heroes, the Izuku Midoriya, correct? He is among them?”

“Matron Kibotsume’s scouts have tracked them, and report they have been a training program reserved for their second and third years.” The Raptor-like being reported, before looking back at the younger members of the Church. “She has taken to training our youngest Pack members harder as well.”

Kitab looked up slowly, his face half hidden in the shadows of his cloak, his visible eye narrowed. “They have already begun?”

“Yes, Supreme Prophet.” The Raptor responded, bowing his head slightly.

He seemed deep in thought, nodding slightly to himself, as though conversing in private with Zzzxx as the two waited, before turning back. “This is an unexpected move for Aizawa. It’s too aggressive.”

“You see why our training for our young hatchlings has intensified?” The Raptor asked, with another slightly bow of the head. “The next move, sir?”

“Your scouts, tell them to be mindful, cautious. If they are caught, let the heroes make the first move.” Kitab ordered, pointing a crocked finger at the Raptor. “The rest of your Clan, continue your operations in private. Remember, we remain hidden in the shadows until the right moment.”

“As you wish, Supreme Prophet.” The Raptor member replied, bowing to both, deeper then before, and leaving silently.

Whately turned to Kitab, as the being left, lowering himself slightly. “Kitab, I am worried, are our Prophecies accelerating too quickly? Tomura, Knull’s Hand, I don’t think is...”

“Tomura is not even there, and his gang of allies will survive, trouble yourself no longer.” The Supreme Prophet said, shaking his head. “We both know a full confrontation is not due for many months. We have time. Let Shigaraki and his League sharpen their teeth, as Izuku and his class furthers their power. Our visions are never wrong.”

“But they can mislead. How disasters almost ruined us before we could reach this day?” Charles questioned.

“Our allies in The Scale Clan are readying us. Our Quirks are strong, our faith stronger.” Kitab declared, shaking his head to the tall man. “We watch and observe. Our part has yet to come.”

“If you are certain, Supreme Prophet.” Charles replied.

Kitab nodded with a satisfied smile upon his face. “Yes, everything is proceeding as we have foreseen.”  
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Class-1B had been dragged from their sleep early in the morning. It wasn’t like they had much choice afterall, and had to follow their teacher, the red and black clothed Vlad King. He lead them along, his thunderous steps leading them along like a thundering drum to set the tone, as the students staggered along.

“We’re improving the Quirks themselves this morning!” Vlad King declared to his class, focused ahead. “Class A has already started.”

Vlad King grunted to himself, bringing a hand to his chin, as he began to think aloud to himself. “This Semester was Class A’s time to shine, but Second Semester will all in favor of Class B!”

All of Class B looked disappointed and disheartened with themselves, but Tetsutetsu felt tears run down his face, holding up a fist in despair. “We’re sorry teacher, we won’t disappoint you going forward.”

Vlad thought it odd to say for a student, but energy and hormones made kids pumped up and crazy to please their teachers and all. Setsuna took a deep breath, trying to focus through the fog of grogginess over her head. “What do you mean by ‘Strengthen your Quirks?’ exactly?”

“You work a muscle, the fibers snap, and then reknit themselves thicker and stronger.” Vlad King explained carefully, taking his time so each student could understand. “A Quirk is the same way. By working your body, we force the Quirk to strengthen itself at a faster rate.”

Bakugou’s scream probably would’ve interrupted any further words exchanged, as he unleashed an explosion from the cold water he was dunking his hands into, before unleashing a powerful blast into the skies right after. Mineta was on the ground yanking off ball after ball from his hair, blood running down his scalp, as Momo and Seto jammed as much cake and treats in their mouths to fuel their Quirks.

Iida ran along the perimeter, the engines in his legs burning white hot, as Sero and Denki screamed, one hooked to a car battery as electricity ran through his body, and the other set tape in a never ending stream down the side of a mountain.

“This looks like hell.” One of Class B muttered as he watched the scene in horror, the others silently agreeing in ramp shock.

“Normally, your bodies would adapt as you grow and fight, but we can’t wait that long.” Vlad interjected, trying to get his students’ minds off the scene before them. It wasn’t much, but he alteast wanted them to have a positive attitude going forward.

“We’ll be watching and advising Class B. Get to it.” Aizawa added with his usual deadpan delivery.

“The two of you, to, what, 40 of us?” Kendo asked, trying to guess just how many students there were through the early morning fog.

“A logical response. So that’s why these four heroes have agree to help us.” Aizawa replied with a knowing nod, before turning to the four behind him.

The four eagerly took up their poses and shouted out their catch phrases, the one of the newcomers, Rag-Doll, looked largely like she belonged in the group of female super heroes who relied on a cat theme to their gear and equipment, and despite her almost childish facial expressions, obviously was a great hero if she was in this group. The one behind them, however, was completely at odds with the rest. A massive titan of a man, as tall and as ruggedly built as All Might or Endeavor, and at odds with the cutesy skirt and vest outfit near identical to his female counterparts, despite his stature and musculature. 

Izuku had heard the Pussycats wore all identical outfits, with some color variance, but he was still thrown out by the sight of a grown, burly man strong enough to bend iron with his bare hands would dress like that. Venom didn’t flinch at the sight however. He had seen plenty of strange dress styles of his various host species, Shi’ar, Ssi-Ruuk, Turian and a countless other number of species across the universe. How people dressed was irrelevant to him, only their strength and usefulness to his host and himself.

What made Izuku and Venom fearful of the man, was when Aizawa assigned them to Tiger’s training regime. It didn’t seem like much a problem at first, though Aizawa had whispered something in the larger man’s ear before the start, until they got to working. Izuku’s endurance and all was above most others, even if his training was limited compared to Shoto’s Spartan-like method, or Bakugou’s pushing himself in everything for the sake of pushing, but Tiger would not accept that lightly.

As the Pussycats explained each of their Quirks and how they would function, Tiger was the last to explaine his. “You students with strength and related enhancement Quirks will be with me.”

As Izuku was put through the intense stretches, muscle exercises and other workouts, he, at the same time, was using Venom to lash out with his tentacles and grab random objects scattered around in the trees, with the idea of pushing Venom’s “Quirk” abilities by forcing him to extend his range even further. Venom did share that his tendrils could, when “Hidden” within his host, could extend his tentacles out for several feet, even yards away from himself. However, Izuku was working over time, and not wanting to push their body any further already, decided to simply play along and pretend this was really overextending his powers.

As his tentacles lashed out and hit the targets hanging from the trees, Tiger marched back over to them, looming over Izuku, his eyes glaring down intensely. “Now, you little Hero wannabe, come at me!”

Izuku snapped to ready position, Venom instantly coating his fist as he lash out with a battle cry, eager to impress. Tiger’s body merely bent and twisted around the fist, before aiming a perfect right hook into Izuku’s face, knocking him to the dirt. “Pathetic! Those muscles haven’t been ripped up hard enough! And that goo isn’t tired out yet either! Keep working!”

“Yes sir!” Izuku managed through the pain, struggling to get to his knees, before Venom spoke in his mind, sounding as excited as a puppy. “This is good training, I’m almost feeling it!”

“I can’t hear you!” Tiger barked out once more.

“Yes sir!!” Izuku yelled louder, getting to his feet, Venom giving yet more unhelpful advice. “Give me enough time, and I’ll land a punch on him!”

‘That’s...not the point.’ Izuku thought with a heavy breath in, as Tiger stood over him, holding a fist before him.

“Your motto is Plus Ultra, show it to me!” He declared.

“Come on Izuku, this is fun!” Venom hissed with delight, as Izuku grunted. ‘For you maybe.’

Izuku didn’t really think this would help him much. They thought Venom was his Quirk, all fine and good, but he wasn’t sure Quirk training would help much. Venom had millions of years of experience with fighting and harnessing his abilities to their fullest. Izuku wasn’t exactly sure what this training would accomplish.

“Think Deku, I’ve stayed with you, even if you are a loser. You’ve got the heart, and body, to be a great hero.” Venom whispered to him. “All you need to to prove it, earn it.”

Izuku nodded, wiping the sweat from his forehead, as he stood up once more, roaring to the skies, determined as ever. Tiger grinned at the display, gesturing for him to keep going, and keep pushing himself, as the automated targets re-positioned and moved all around him once more. Aizawa watched Izuku continue his training.

Truth be told, he wasn’t exactly sure how to do most of the stuff with Venom. For one, he had used his Ersaure twice throughout the year on Izuku when he was unaware, and both times nothing had happened. Venom had still remained active. Much of this was formality. If Venom wasn’t a Quirk, he wasn’t sure how Quirk-Strengthening exercises could improve anything, but Izuku needed to be trained just like everyone else while he was here.

Back at UA, he had discussed his plans with Nezu, leaning against the wall of his office, looking off into the distance out the window. “I still don’t know what to make of this kid.”

“If it’s not Quirk, what could it be?” Nezu asked, filling through the paperwork of the school, mostly setting things up for the Summer training camp for Aizawa.

“That’s what I wanted to ask you. I’ve never heard of anyone developing an ability without a Quirk.” Aizawa said in disbelief, still unable to truly come to terms with the idea, even as he said it aloud.

Nezu put down the papers and thought over it carefully, tapping his paw against the table for a moment. “The hero Godzillo took an interest in him early on, and his DNA tends to get used to create all sorts of strange new creatures.”

“It’s what I thought, but those still have Quirks, based on Toho, and mutated, but Quirks all the same.” Aizawa remarked, rubbing his chin in thought. “This could be anything.”

“I’d wager a bio-weapon of some kind. Izuku could’ve found the thing in a lab accident of some kind, and he doesn’t want to reveal the truth.” Nezu wagered. “Hence, the Men in Black showing up.”

Aizawa nodded slightly, partially accepting the idea, but it just seemed so strange to him. Nezu seemed to sense his dissatisfaction, and to be fair, was only going off a guess at this point. “You have full control over the class, would you like to transfer him or…?”

“No.” Aizawa said quickly and resolutely. “I don’t know what to make of it, but I want to watch him. I think he can still be a Hero, as long as he keeps Venom from eating anyone.”

“What if he turns out to be Jet Black, then?” Nezu asked pointedly. They both knew what that would mean. Turning him in.

“I’ll ask him when I get the chance.” Aizawa replied simply, his expression cold and distant, making the whole thing even more cryptic. 

Nezu simply shrugged, as he returned to his work. As always, he hoped Aizawa would stick to the rules, if not the letter, then the spirit of them, and not do anything to rash.

Back in the present, at the Camp, Aizawa merely watched the students continue to work, partially hoping Bakugou would throw out his voice from how much he kept screaming at the top of his lungs. He had to give him one thing, when Katsuki set his mind to something, he completed it with 100% of his energy, and all the bloodlust he could manage. He carefully jogged a few steps forward, allowing Iida to pass by in his laps, as he watched the others at work.

It was at 4:00 when they finally finished their training workout. Even Izuku, with Venom enhancing his body and endurance, was run ragged by the whole thing, and just about everyone had stumbled their way in, bruised and battered all over, and barely able to stay on their feet. The darkened skies and high moon was a clear and present reminder of how long they had been at their grueling work.

Pixie-Bob and Rag-doll merely laughed lightly at their predicament. “Like we said yesterday, your pampering ends from here on out.”

“If you’re gonna eat, you gotta make it yourself! Today’s ingredients are curry!” Rag-Doll said, her face beaming in a broad smile.

“Yes ma’am.” The Trainees intoned, as Venom zeroed in on the ingredients, ignore to start making food, even if said food wasn’t living meat like he preferred.

Rag-doll giggled loudly to herself, buzzing along excitedly, like nothing could contain her. “You all look like you’re ready to drop. That’s why this meal’s gonna be special.”

“Hmm, of course, that makes sense! As heroes, we have to win the hearts and minds of people in need and who will be traumatized!” Iida said aloud, before turning to the two classes. “1A, 1B! Let’s pour our resources together into making the greatest curry for our school!”

Everyone cheered, more likely at the prospect of getting food then actually having a teachable moment, but it worked all the same. Aizawa breathed a small sigh of relief. ‘Iida helps makes somethings a lot easier.’

As such, it did not take long for both classes to pool their resources and remaining energy together to whip together the curry, or whatever their ingredients produced. As long as they could eat it without getting sick, most of the students would be fine with whatever came out. As the others prepared the pots to boil the ingredients, Deku was dividing up said ingredients so they would be perfectly prepared and balanced for cooking, as the others started fires under said pots.

“Bakugou, you can’t start fires with your explosions.” Sero muttered, watching him desperately fire off explosion after explosion under the pot, and only burning the underside of the pot severely.

“Just watch me damn it!!”

“Todoroki can we get some fire over here?” Mina asked, pointing to the pots in front of her, as she carefully handled the meat with the tongs.

“Guys, you can’t rely on him for everything. You’ll never learn to start a fire yourself.” Momo admonished as she produced a Torch lighter from her wrist.

Jioru gave an unbelieving look for a moment, looking to the other classmates for a moment, as Momo started the fire.

Todoroki approached with his left hand outwards, shrugging slightly. “No, no, it’s fine.”

Tongues of fire lightly danced off his finger tips and palm, starting an easy but strong flame, as Ochako danced up and down excitedly.

“Burn, burn, burn!” Mina chanted in excitement, pumping her fists in rhythm. “Burn it all!”

“No good if it’s all burned.” Shoto replied calmly, as Deku carefully poured everything into the pots.

Tokoyami watched closely, as Izuku prepared everything, slightly astonished by the whole thing. “You’re surprisingly adept at preparing food, Midoriya.”

“Yeah, part of having Venom, because he enhances my body, I have a higher metabolism.” Izuku explained with a shrug, with the practiced precision of having to explain in the past why he could pack in so much food. “I learned to be a good cook. That and mom was always at work, so I had to be self sufficient.”

“A heightened metabolism, hmmm?” Tokoyami remarked, as Izuku poured it in. “I guess all Quirks have their upsides and downsides.”

“Right.” Izuku said, as Venom chanted hungrily within his mind, almost never stopping his demand for food as the he prepared the last of the expertly made pots for food. “Hungry! Hungry!”

‘Yeah, I know, give it time.’ Izuku ordered nervously. He knew how Venom would act if he didn’t get the food he needed. He didn’t want him going wild, with his classmates.

“Relax, I like flesh, but I’ve held off since you insisted on chocolate.” Venom remarked with a dark chuckle. “Unless you count the USJ Nomu, I haven’t touched a pinch of human flesh. I can wait.”

Midoriya nodded for a moment, before pouring the last bit into the last pot, and standing back to look over his work for a moment, satisfied. ‘I get it Venom. I’m just scared of the Agency finding us, and anyone here getting hurt.’

“I have always tried to protect the innocent, ever since we bonded.” Venom replied softly. “It’s been a dream of mine since I first spawned.”

Izuku was surprised. Everything he had said had lead him to believe Venom had always been a soldier within his Empire, a mere grunt who looked to inflict pain on those that got in his way. Going after criminals was just a way to ameliorate Izuku’s conscious when he attacked others. It caused a million questions to go through his mind for a moment, but Izuku decided not to ask. It felt like prying, trying to get at Venom’s past, first with his past dreams, and then with this “grandchild” of his, this ‘Toxin’.

That alone caused a lot of questions too. Venom seemed wistful, almost nostalgic for his offspring. Venom talked about children and parents at odds, destroying each other for power and strength. How much of this was his actual beliefs then?  
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Izuku would chew over these questions later, the meal readied and cooked to perfection under his (and Venom’s) careful tending and prepared at the moment of perfection. Even with Izuku’s help, this wasn’t five star quality, but it was delicious, especially to a class that hadn’t eaten anything in several hours. Table manners were second to greedily scarfing it down with gusto, and Yaomomo, the usual epitome of Lady-like manners, was shoveling in curry as fast as she could.

“Man, Momo, you and Midoriya can pack it away like nothing.” Sero remarked through his own meal.

“It’s all about the lipids in food that I convert to create new objects.” She explained calmly, in between mouthfuls of food.

“I just get big and punch things hard.” Izuku explained simply, again, practiced in the art of playing Venom off as his Quirk.

It was after going for his third and final plate, while everyone had satisfied themselves on two, that Izuku noticed Kota walking off into the night on his own, making sure none of the adults noticed as he vanished into the night. Izuku, however, would not be so easily alluded, and carefully followed him, keeping a fair amount of distance and staying quiet.

Venom growled in agitation. “Must we get involved?”

“He needs help, obviously we have to help.” Izuku replied softly, as he began to make his way up one of the smaller mountains in the middle of the forest, not far from the central encampment.

“Losing parents, I don’t know exactly what that’s like, mine was evil and rotted to the core,” Venom remarked, as they followed him up. “But I do know that losing Toxin hurt. It still hurts. I would not want a stranger poking around in my past to try and make things better.”

Izuku was silent for a moment, not used to the Symbiote sharing such an emotional side to itself, as Venom made a sighing sound. “Step carefully. Help if you want. I’m just here for the ride.”

Izuku continued upwards, carefully following behind his footprints, making his way up the mountain to the very top. The place was high above the trees, but just low enough to be safe. Because of this vantage point, Izuku could see out across the trees and beautiful landscapes as far as the eye could see. Above, the stars twinkled in the sky above like white and blue jewels, the moon not quite full, but casting a stunning, lambent white glow upon everything.

A loud grumble sounded from the plateau, as Izuku stepped upwards, spotting Kota glaring out over the landscape, his mind seemingly elsewhere. He cleared his throat first to announce his pressence, before speaking.

“Hey uh, you seem kinda hungry still.” Izuku said awkwardly. “I usually go for thirds, Quirk and all, but I saved you a plate.”

“What are you doing here!? I don’t need your charity!” Kota yelled, springing to his feet in anger.

“Sorry, I followed your foot prints here and all, Ven’s real good at following people.” Izuku explained, as Venom rumbled within his chest, not liking this one bit. “You haven’t eaten anything, so I figured...”

“I’m fine, just scram. This is my secret base!” Kota interjected, narrowing his eyes angrily.

Izuku lingered for a moment, contemplating whether to leave, or to continue, before swallowing heavily. “Your parents, were the two heroes, the Water Hoses right?”

Kota turned, clenching his small fists like he was ready to fight Izuku right there. “Did Mandalay tell you?!”

“No, I figured it out.” Izuku replied calmly, as Venom hissed into his ear. “Tread. Carefully.”

“It was a real tragedy.” Izuku continued, his voice low and quiet. “It was all over the country.”

“Screw you.” Kota mumbled angrily.

Suddenly, without warning, Venom overtook Izuku’s body, before the host could even protest to his Other, as Kota turned slightly, looking slightly surprised and fearful for a moment, before Venom spoke, his voice a low boom, like thunder in the distance. “I...you’ll have to forgive my host. He’s quite stupid for a smart person sometimes.”

“Whatever.” Kota muttered again, shaking his head as he sat down, pulling his knees to his chest, before glaring at Venom. “You’re all real stupid. Stretching and pushing your Quirks. It’s all gross and stupid.”

“Understandable, I don’t much care for the training much either, to be honest.” Venom remarked, as he approached, laying the plate of food a few feet behind Kota. “May we sit and watch the stars. We rarely get to see them, and we’ll only have a few minutes.”

“Do whatever you want.” Kota remarked. He didn’t care for this weird Quirk Izuku had, but at least it had the sense to not want to talk.

Venom sat by, looking over the landscapes and night skies before him. He found it easy to forget that this world was not so ugly, being stuck in the big cities. He found them disagreeable, mostly because the Imperium was more lassie-fare about things. Since every Symbiote knew where their kin where at all times, they could be called from anywhere at the moment they would be needed, and be there in the time they were needed. The fact humans needed to be packed in for even their jobs reminded Venom how very lonely it could be to be a human.

After several minutes in silence, in which Kota seemed to calm down, if only slightly, Venom stood from his position, taking a deep breath through his knife-like fangs, before turning to Kota. “I can’t share too much, but I am not exactly a Quirk. I’m not a normal power to this world.”

Kota looked at him in confusion and agitation. “Then why the heck are you in Quirk training. You’re just talking crap.”

“Consider it a cover.” Venom remarked with a small shrug. “I don’t think my host knows what it’s like to lose family, but I do, let’s just say that the pain is like a dagger in your heart and mind. Being able to find some place quiet and get away from everyone’s empty platitudes is the best reprieve.”

“Whatever, just scram, alright?” Kota remarked quietly, his voice filled with poison. “Crazy freaking Quirk.”

“Apologies. We’ll leave you to your Secret Base, and tell no one.” Venom replied with a nod, turning and bound off into the forest. He left Kota with the meal of Curry, and on the other side of the rocks, the shattered cliff face, still wet from someone smashing water into it.

Venom was quick to move and get back to camp, and even his senses could not detect Aizawa hanging from the closest training, listening in to both of their conversations, his baggy eyes narrowed. He himself would have to return soon to see to the Remedial class, and Mineta. But this confirmed at least one thing to him that he long had guessed at.

“Not exactly a Quirk?” Aizawa muttered with narrowed eyes, tapping his finger on the tree branch he perched upon. “Midoriya, what have you gotten into?”  
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Back in the city, all was mostly quiet in the small diner in Hosu, no one really caring about the strangely dressed man stepping in, his long white coat billowing behind him, his orange-red eyes scanning the area before him, before settling on the emaciated, pale skeletal man seated in one corner, reading a Newspaper and sipping some coffee, but eating nothing. That was Toshinori, All Might’s agent. Godzillo moved with the sheer-footed, steel-focus of a predator, standing over the table for a moment patiently. 

“Ah, Mister Nakajima, good to see you.” Toshinori remarked, folding and putting away his paper, and standing up to shake his hand, the Monster Hero taking it carefully, worried he might break the man’s hand. “I was hoping we’d discuss Midoriya.”

“Good to be seen.” He remarked, carefully folding his overcoat behind him and sitting down, the table groaning slightly. “So, what is it you want to know about?”

“Where to start? What was he like when you worked with Izuku, what are his strengths, his weaknesses?” Toshinori asked, as the waitress refilled his coffee, and Nakajima placed a quick order of his own.

He considered Toshinori’s questions carefully, trying to pick the best answer going forward. “He’s… a little timid and over-zealous at the same time. He often overthinks and hesitates. Venom is aggressive and fiery. Almost uncontrolled, but the two are strongest together.”

“You almost talk about them like they’re two separate people.” Toshinori remarked to himself. “But what about his Hero work with you, did he listen, how was he with people?”

“Heh. He went off on his own and disobeyed orders to save people in Hosu.” Nakajima remarked with a small smile. “Don’t let this leak, but it wasn’t Endeavor and me who stopped Stain. Those claws and burns were from Midoriya and his pals.”

“I see.” Toshinori remarked with a small, nervous smile.

“He’s more heart then brain sometimes.” Nakajima remarked finally, as the waitress brought his coffee, and without adding any creamers, immediately began drinking it. “I feel like if All Might wants him as a student, they’ll pair well together.”

He smiled for a moment, before taking another sip, and looking back at Toshinori. “Why is All Might focused on him? All the kids got potential? Why just Midoriya?”

“The fight with the Nomu, and I guess the Hosu incident got All Might’s attention,” Toshinori explained coolly, practiced in referring to his Hero name as a different person entirely. “He wants to take him as a student and maybe successor.”

“Successor?” Nakajima asked, tapping fingertips on the table. “I guess All Might’s gonna have to retire someday. Midoriya will probably ready be then, I guess.”

“Indeed.” Yagi replied with a nod, scratching the back of his neck nervously.

The two continued their discussion for much of the night, both about Midoirya, and then the League of Villains, and hopefully, that all of this would turn out alright.  
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In one of the high mountains overlooking the camp, stood the five figures from before, the newest members of the League of Villains, one still covering his body in his cloak, the others dressed in the casual cloths and jackets.

The girl, Toga, fiddled with the mask over her face, attached to a number of tanks and specialized syringes, and knife sheaths all along her sides, thighs and shoulders. “Errgh, this is so not cute!”

“They were designed on the Black Market to specialize in assisting our Quirks. They’re for function, not style.” Mustard remarked relaxed and as cold as ever, his voice muffled slightly and given a slight robotic tone by the specialized gasmask and WW1-style helmet and gear over his face and mouth.

“Couldn’t they make it cuter is all I’m asking!” Toga pouted, throwing her hands up in frustration.

X grunted slightly, refitting his new, more armored mask over his face and mouth. Other then some fitted shoulder and knee pads, he had very little new “Christmas gifts”. “Yeah, at least you guys got something, I was first to join, why am I stuck looking like an edgy 90’s Comic book character.”

“Probably because you always did.” Dabi muttered quietly to himself, rolling his eyes.

“Tomura said something about budget constraints.” Mustard remarked.

“He can genetically modify those Nomu freaks but stuff for me is out of the question?” X demanded in annoyance, shaking his head in disgust.

“Who cares about fashion and all that, I’m too pumped to sit here,” The brute growled through his own mask, lifting up a hand as his fingers cracked and flexed. “Just cut us loose.”

“Shut your mouths, all of you crazy bastards, you’re all too loud.” Dabi commanded, glaring back at them in irritation. “We wait. We still need all 11 of us together to pull this off.”

As he spoke, the next three showed up to join them. Magne was the first to speak, carrying a gigantic, pillar-like magnet across her broad shoulder. “Sorry we’re late darlings.”

Spinner carefully folded back his Stain-style mask and hair, while checking all his knives and blades to make sure they were secure, as the third hobbled beside them, dressed and bound within a black suit with numerous straps and spiked belts binding his arms to his body, only his mouth visible from the mask, lips pulled back by his bindings.

He muttered to himself, jabbering away as he walked, drool dripping form his teeth. “Job….Job...Job….”

“And that makes Eight of us. Three more before we strike.” Dabi remarked, before turning back to the site of the camp, it’s few lights gleaming in the dark. “The League made a mistake going after USJ with a bunch of random punks. Better a small group of elites.”

“First to go, will be their sense of peace.” Dabi continued with a manic grin, the wind picking up around them. “They have to realize that their lives rest completely at our mercy.”  
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Training continued as always, the class being pushed to their absolute limits once more to complete their work-outs. Most were throwing their all into it, as always, except the ones stuck in remedial, and Mineta. They were barely standing, utterly exhausted and looking half dead. By time their classes had finished, they had to go on 5 hours of sleep.

“Remedials, keep working!” Aizawa commanded in annoyance, part of his scarf lashing out and wrapping around Kirishima’s forehead, yanking back to get him awake. “We’re not done here yet.”

“Just a little...sleepy...” Mina managed eyes half closed, even as she stood and tried to push herself onwards.

“I warned all of you this wouldn’t be pretty.” Aizawa remarked with a huff. “You all need to keep pushing your limits if you don’t want a repeat of this.”

“Why am I here?” Mineta mumbled, stumbling for a moment, before Aizawa’s scarf lashed out and yanked back on his head as well.

“Because you need to learn self-control and reigning in that lust,” Aizawa barked, narrowing his eyes in disgust. “This is serious work and needs focus, being ready to face life and death, not for you to be a sexual harassment lawsuit in the making.”

He glared down at all of them, eyes red and terrifying, completely focused on them as he continued chewing them out. “Worst of all, you were all exposed during the final exams. As you train, think about why you’re so much more tired then everyone else.”

As he spoke, Ochako walked by, carefully a large boulder by her hands, keeping it close to her grasp, but not quite holding, learning not only to float larger objects without getting sick, but learning to control how far off the ground she could get certain things. Aoyama, meanwhile, stumbled out of one of the portable bathrooms, holding his stomach and green all over his face.

“Aoyama, Ochako, don’t you give up either!” Aizawa yelled, turning his icy glare upon them. “You didn’t fail, but you came damn close. 30 was the minimum, and you squeaked by with 35.”

Ochako looked stricken for a moment, as Aoyama groaned, holding back the urge to vomit on the ground right then and there.

Izuku had kept up his physical training, essentially boiling down to a boxing match between himself in Venom form and Tiger, trying to land a number of hits on him, only for him to stretch and bend out of the way of his strikes, before having to tank every hit and not stumble from it. Tiger was no All Might or Nomu, but Venom could still feel every hit, stumble ever so slightly from every punch.

Venom was actually enjoying this. Not just because it felt like a real fight for him, but he was experimenting with modifications to his biomass in the heat of battle. As Tiger drove forward, ready to deliver another hook into Venom’s face, he held up his hand and crafted a shield of blackened, oil-like mass, blocking the blow completely. Tiger gave a small, impressed smile for a moment, before continuing his attack.

It was surprising, but Izuku was not completely taken aback by his Symbiote’s new defensive abilities. Venom had grown a lot since they were on their own, and without Riot or other Symbiotes from the Imperium to lord over him, it made sense Venom would start to branch out on his own and find new things he could do.

“As you train, remember your fundamental drive, what lead you here, why you’re training.” Aizawa stated, as Izuku and Venom held off another assault. “Why am I here? Why is he riding me so hard? Only you have that answer.”

‘Drive’ The Thought had burned into the forefront of each student’s mind, as they burned the area around them, created further and further explosions, or popped out more and more items while eating.

Izuku almost felt the desire forming to ask Aizawa something important, before refocusing on his training with Venom. He could ask it later.

“What is it you wish to ask him.” Venom asked mentally, remaining focused on the attacking Tiger.

“Well, where is All Might for one?” Izuku wondered aloud.

Venom thought it over for a moment, before crafting another large shield from his hand, resembling something like a Pavise or a Roman Legionary’s shield, and blocking blows from Tiger. He nodded to himself as he finally came up with an answer. “This is secret right? So All Might showing up anywhere is bound to get attention.”

“I guess...” Izuku muttered to himself.

Venom did not bother asking why, refocusing his attentions on Tiger in their short brawl, but he could guess. Even without the connection the two shared, Venom could see easily why Izuku was so intent on All Might. He wanted to help Kota come to terms with his apprehension towards Quirks and society. Venom for his part was largely apathetic. Kota was bound to come around and change. Trying to force things would just hurt more then anything.

“Let’s jump subjects. Tonight, if you all do your training, you get an interclass test of courage!” Pixie-Bob declared excitedly. “If you work hard, you get to play hard, get it?”

Murmurs broke out among the class, many wondering what exactly a ‘test of courage’ entailed. Monoma, of course, was more interested in the interclass part then anything else.

“A revelry in the dark.” Tokoyami remarked, Ochako giving him a weird, sideways glance.

Vlad King, sensing the classes were about to lose their focus, decided to get everything back in order. “Alright, if you want to enjoy tonight, get to work!”

“Yes sir!” Both classes declared, refocusing their efforts.

From further away, out of sight of the others, were two reptilian, raptor-like figures seated among the tree tops, watching the class with yellow-green eyes. They wore simple cloths for the outdoors, one red with plums along his head, the other orange. 

The second, the orange one, turned to Red. “Children’s games, this is how they train?”

“If it gets results, who cares?” The other remarked, readjusting his hand and foot claws to stay on the branch. “We won’t be here for long anyway.”

“I don’t like this. We should be earning our place in Knull’s glory, not waiting for others to do our work.” The Second grumbled.

“Calm yourself. To reveal ourselves too early, would bring ruin to the Church and others of Knull’s flock.” The first replied, clicking his fangs together. “We have tracked them, monitored them, and even leaked the information to the League’s master. Then, we leave them to bleed each other.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The hours burned away quickly, the class getting another meal prepared for the end of the day, before their big tests of courage. Perhaps after two days of hard work and being worked to the bone by their teachers and the extra heroes, they were getting used to having to wait awhile to get their meals after their exercise.

Bakugou was at the cutting board, slicing up carrots and other vegetables with the precision skill of an expert, chopping through them in seconds, each and every piece largely the same size and cleanly cut. Ochako walked by with some of her own ingredients, eyes bugging out of her head in shock.

“Wow, when did you get so good at cutting food Bakugou?” She said with surprise.

“What do you mean, when did I get good?! Why are you people so bad at everything?!” He yelled in rage, turning to her with an expression of pure rage, even as he continued cutting the vegetables with practiced precision.

“At least he’s not blowing things up.” Denki remarked, as Kirishima sighed to himself.

“I’m too tired for any of this.”

Izuku, meanwhile, was preparing the pots and coals this time for the cooking, gloves carefully placed over his burned-scared hand and the fully healed one. Venom chanted within his brain. “Food, food, food!”

As he worked, Shoto was walking behind him, his own kiln-made pot in tow. Izuku turned slightly, before clearing his throat. “Todoroki, can I ask you something?”

“Hmm, what about?” Shoto replied, raising an eyebrow.

“It’s about Kota. That kid.”

“The one that hit you in the balls?” Shoto asked bluntly, before his eyes drifted around the room. “Where is he by the way.”

“He disappears a lot.” Izuku stated. “But he seems to dislike heroes. A lot. Just Quirks in general. I don’t know what to say.”

“It’s a bit mean to say, but perhaps you shouldn’t say anything at all.” Shoto remarked. “If words meant anything, he wouldn’t hate heroes, cause someone else would’ve given him a big speech before.”

Izuku slightly quietly as Shoto spoke further. “If you want to convince him, actions might work better then words.”

“I guess I get what you mean. It would pretentious for someone to just give big speeches to him.” Izuku remarked as Venom grumbled within his head. “Told you.”

“you might also want to be careful. I don’t know why you have an interest in this kid, but you have a habit for poking into delicate business.” Shoto remarked, eye narrowing slightly. “Not everyone is going to appreciate that.”

Before Izuku could reply, Iida was barking orders at them from afar. “You two, stop talking and get back to work! Our Vegetable and Beef stew must be the best possible!”

After a hardy meal of excited eating, everyone was able to get on their feet and ready for the test of courage.

“After a good meal, we’re ready for our reward!” Mina declared, pumping her fist in anticipation. The others in the Remedial group began to cheer, before Aizawa cut in.

“Sorry to interrupt, and it pains me to say it, but the Remedial class will be spending extra time with me.” Aizawa cut in, the remedials stopping right where they stood. “I wasn’t satisfied with your performance today, so I now I cut into your play time.”

Mina did not react at first, merely looking at him with a slightly daze, slightly unbelieving expression, before she melted into an expression of total panic and horror at what he had just said. “YOU’VE GOTTA BE KIDDING ME!!”

Aizawa’s capture scarf lashed out, the teacher perhaps sensing his students would on some level try to make a break for it. Mineta tried to escape, even as the others cried out for their chance at fun and a reward. Izuku and others shuddered at the sight, as they were dragged back to the central facility.

“I didn’t even fail!” Mineta cried out in horror as Aizawa dragged them away.

As they left, the Pussycats went into their explanation of things, going over the rules and rolls, such as who would be scaring who, the drawing of straws, and the card in the middle to show they had actually done their rout and weren’t just cheating.

“A revelry in the dark.” Tokoyami muttered to himself.

“He keeps saying that.” Ochako muttered to Izuku, trying to hold back a laugh.

“The goal with this is to use any Quirk abilities you have to scare the other team til they piss their pants!” Tiger roared with excitement, as Pixie-Bob and Rag-doll jumped up and down excitedly. Mandalay merely looked at the three in deadpan silence at their interruption of her instructions.

“Ew. Please don’t say that.” Jirou muttered, shaking her head.

Once the teams were drawn, Izuku was put with Ojiro, as team six, right behind Tsuyu and Ochako, Venom was rather surprisingly supportive of the idea. “He’s a good one. If forgettable. Once we get in there, we’ll scare the shits outta them though!”

‘Why am I not surprised you were already planning scare them?’ Izuku thought with a defeated shake of the head.

“Hey, at least when we go in, we’ll scare them better then anyone.” Ojiro suggested with a nervous laugh. “No offense, but your Quirk...”

“Yeah, he was planning that himself.” Izuku said with a bemused smile. Venom chuckled darkly to himself. Since it was competition, he’d go all out, even if it was scaring children.

Bakugou was stuck with Todoroki, already disgusted at the idea, and trying to pawn off their partnership to anyone else. “Will anyone trade with me damnit!”

“No trades and no givies-backies!” Rag-doll declared, somersaulting behind him, as Bakugou straightened in rage, stiff as a board as his eyes went bloodshot.

He said nothing, perhaps accepting his fate to be stuck with Shoto at this point, who seemed largely apathetic about the whole thing. Izuku was simply glade he wasn’t isolated again by the whole thing. The teams went in, one after the other, before coming to Uraraka and Tsuyu.

Pixie-Bob motioned them in with an easy smile. “So, these are the fifths, Froggy-Kitty and Uraraka-Kitty.”

The two went in, Tsuyu generally relaxed even as the screams of panic and fright filled the forest. Uraraka, meanwhile was visibly terrified over the idea of being here, as she and Tsuyu walked the dirt path before them.

“I’m so scared Tsu. There’s so much screaming.” Uraraka said, looking around in fright.

“Understandable. That would be Kyouka and Hagakure,” Tsuyu explained calmly, before holding up her hand. “I don’t scare easily. Would you like to hold my hand as we go through.”

Ochako did so, as they continued along. With night falling over them, everything was darkened and near-pitch black over them. As the two headed on their way, the Students of Class B, several yards ahead, lay in wait, congratulating themselves on their ability to scare others.

Honenuki poked his head out of the bushes, his silver hair and exposed teeth, with few lips or gums, practically making him look like Venom’s love child, stood in start contrast with the more average appearances of his classmates Yui and Kendo.

“Kodai! You did amazing. Everyone crapped the pants because of you!” He remarked, giving a wide grin.

“That was great work.” Kendo said, giving a thumbs-up.

“Thank you.” The dark-haired girl replied simply.

“Bakugou and Todoroki were hilarious.” He stated with a laugh. 

As they talked back and forth, Honenuki stopped, sniffing the air. “By the way, you notice that smell? Smells like burning.”

“Now that you mention it, I’m seeing smoke or something.” Kendo remarked, as a strange dark purple, musty smoke began to slowly roll in from beyond the forest. She gave it a strange look. Bakugou nor Todoroki produced smoke like that.

“Maybe Bakugou or someone got so scared, they fired off their Quir...” He began before the smoke went into his nostrils and mouth, and he immediately fell on his face.

Kendo looked on in shock, before quickly clamping her mouth shut and expanding her hand to a gigantic size and wrapping it around Yui. “Don’t breath this in, it’s poison!”

Little did she realize, the gas was shooting out across the forests, the thick, purple fog hanging thick over the forests, as those in the rest of the group looked up to the skies in confusion.

Izuku was tipped off before he knew what was going on, Venom coldly reporting to him. “Deku. We have to get out of here. A fire and poison gas have been unleashed. We must leave.”

“Wha…?” He began, before he noticed the Pussycats were looking up in the forests. In the far distance, a blue glow rose above the trees, thick pillars of smoke rising with it.

“Smoke, what the hell is going on?” Tiger remarked, as the group remained focused on it.

In the epicenter of this smoke, surrounded by blue fires and conflagration all around, was Dabi, his left firmly pressed against the bark of a tree, fire burning off the side of it, as he smiled to himself. “Let the games begin. Let’s go wild, Vanguard Action Squad.”

As Toga and Tsuyu continued on, only slightly aware of what was going on, Toga watched them from the forests and underbrush, a mask fitted over her face, as she carefully checked out her two targets, making sure to know their every move and reaction so she knew how best to take them apart.

In the path leading to the main building, a figure dressed in black and with white bone-like spurs and growths jutting from his face and hands, his skin peeling and breaking off as bone claws shot form hsi fingers, waiting with narrowed eyes in the dark, while in the clearing itself, Hikishi shouldered her massive pillar-like magnet, like a rocket launcher.

“Little Kitty cat is being such an annoyance. Let’s change that.” She remarked, before a pink glow surrounded Pixie-Bob, who hardly noticing the strange pulling sensation, until she was torn form the ground, and slammed head-first into the pillar.

“What...what the hell? There are villains here?” Ojiro shouted in shock, as Magne stood over Pixie-Bob’s unconscious body, the magnet pressed threateningly against her skull.

Another, a smaller, wiry figure, dressed almost exactly like Stain, with various swords and blades sheathed across him, stepped over Pixie-Bob, throwing his hands out dramatically beside him, giving a small grin to the gathered heroes.

It was with that Izuku realized that, if they were under attack, that meant Kota was alone, out in the mountain, with no one around. At that mountain, the massive cloaked figure stepped into the shadows, watching him with a grin beneath him mask.

Venom squirmed in annoyance. “We have to move now. These two chucklefucks aren’t alone. Fires, gas, blood and a man whose more bone then muscle, and a man more muscle then bone. I can sense much hostile intent.”

“I had a feeling that was the case.” Izuku muttered, as Tiger and Mandalay squared off with the two. He bit his lip slightly, as Venom began to coat his legs.

This was about to get deadly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, here we are, heading to the big old fight in Kamino and the Muscular Battle, a personal fav. I enjoy writing all of the Vanguards. They're all so interesting and crazy in their own unique way. No spoilers, in case you're lagging behind, but I kinda wish Big Sis Mages and Mustard had stuck around a little more.
> 
> Also did a bit of set up and build up for the Church of New Darkness and their Lovecraft shenanigans, helping to explain how exactly All for One came to find the camp in the first place, and how they play into things.


	32. Battle on the Mountain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku and his class face the fight for their lives, as the Vanguard Action Squad makes it's debut.

As the students squared off and prepared as best they could for the fight of their lives, the Anti-Symbiote Taskforce gathered in their private office. At the head of the small, simple road table, was Agent Kinzokumure, fingers interlaced in front of him. The room was dark, gunmetal gray, almost black, with a one-way window overlooking an active lava flow, safe even at this short distance from it. Around him, where his associates, the heavy set Kuishinbo, and three others. One was a wiry red man, hair like crimson flames that flowed down his neck, and scruff around his face. His suit was like the others, but loose and unkempt. Despite his thin appearance, he gave the appearance of someone with a strange strength of his own. The other was a woman, dressed professionally, every measured and carefully positioned. Her most notable feature was her deep purple skin, glossy black hair and purple eyes.

The last was not dressed in the tailored suits and such the others wore, but rather then a suit, wore a heavy gray jacket or some sort, not quite a lab coat, but too professional looking to street clothing, and under it, a simple black shirt and pants. The man was pale, almost white, his cheeks shallow, eyes deep and bags gathered under them, as he interlaced his long, bone-like fingers together.

“We have a situation brewing in the forest. It looks as though the League of Villains is making another move.” Kinzokumure explained, bringing up a hologram that displayed the images of various League-Vanguard members. “The identities of some, like the burn victim here, are unknown, but what’s important is the opportunity here.”

“To do what exactly?” Purple lady asked coldly, sounding almost uncaring and annoyed with everything going on. 

“To retrieve everything we need. Izuku Midoriya, or at least the creature using him, is there, as is Mina Ashido, and Shigaraki’s minions. Capturing the first two is for tests, the others, will lead us to Shigaraki, and by extension, the Symbiote identified as Riot.” Kinzokumure remarked, clicking a button to show the displays captured on the night before the battle, of the various League and UA students gathering and training. “A surgical strike will not only deal with the Symbiotes and their...supporters, but reduce any….unneeded challenge to Hero society.”

A robotic, modulated voice suddenly spoke, from the intercoms above and around the room. “Belay that order.”

“Commander?” Kinzokumure asked, startled by their sudden involvement. “Why are…?”

“Let the Villains do as they please.” The Voice commanded. “We will not allow our operations to potentially come into the public eye just for two Symbiotes and a test subject.”

“Sir, with respect...” Kinzokumure began to protest.

“Commander.” The Voice harshly corrected, causing every agent except the Scientist to flinch.

“Commander, we are to minimize Symbiote contact with the world and extract individuals who know too much and could prove useful, all to secure the safety of humanity.” Kinzokumure responded coolly. “This is amble opportunity to do just that.”

“I will not debate this agent.” The Boss replied coldly, Kinzokumure flinching fearfully at the robotic tone. “Move. On.”

“If we must, I have news on our test subject.” The old man remarked, drumming his finger tips together. “All of them I should say.”

“Speak, at once, Doctor Cathal.” The Commander ordered simply.

Cathal smiled coldly, eyes shimmering for a moment, before rising from his seat, clicking a button on the table, before a screen lite up, showing numerous displays, including a shimmering, formless black goo sliding and slithering within a containment vessel, Cathal performing numerous tests, and technical read-outs on the creature.

“The Clone Symbiote of Venom, Subject KYL-M22349, extracted from samples of Venom’s tongue from earlier engagements with the Shie Hassaikai and Villain Akaguro Chizome, has reached Species Maturity.” Cathal reported coldly, gesturing to the creature in question. “Unfortunately, Subject has refused to bond with any of our selected candidates.”

“Why does it refuse?” The Commander asked, his voice betraying a hint of rage at the situation.

“I had thought to ask it, but the creature tends to feast on brains and leave not but bone left of it’s victims,” Cathal replied simply with a shrug. “So I figured it would be best for my health to not try and ask it.”

The screen flashed, to show the creature, already “Bonded” to one subject, brutally tearing apart any guards that tried to stop it. It was near identical to Venom, more blue-tinged in appearance, but just as deadly, punching straight through one’s guard’s chest, armor and all, and out through the other end, tearing free, before jumping to the second, and grabbing and throwing him hard into the nearby wall, and, as the last tried to shot it in the back, the Symbiote turned, and with speed only a few of the top heroes could equal, rushing to the terrified guard, and swinging both open hands outwards, turning the guard’s head into splattered gore. It stood over the corpse for a moment, before licking the blood off it's claws with it's long tongue, before turning to the cameras, it's rictus broadening, as thought to taunt those that watched.

Kuishinbo sighed, rubbing his forehead at the sight. “These things can talk right? Can’t we try and establish communications?”

“I tried many things, offering rewards, torturing it with sound, but it refuses any sort of engagement.” Cathal reported with a comical shrug. “It’s not a people-person, er, People-alien nightmare.”

“Should we terminate? I don’t need to remind you how many James Cameron and John Carpenter movies have shown us that keeping it alive is a very, very, very bad idea.” The wiry agent asked, drumming his left hand’s fingers on the table, looking around the room.

“Belay that as well, Agent Usui Okiatsumaru.” The Commander remarked, before focusing their attentions again. “Doctor Cathal, what of the other test subject.”

“Subject KYL-A39392? Obedient, if only because it’s not even sentient.” Cathal replied, looking slightly pensive. “But it’s abilities are not perfect replications and are...different.”

“Then it is not a worthy subject. Cast it out.” The Commander ordered sternly, the others looking on in surprise. The Commander had pushed for a clone of Venom, and was now throwing one away that had landed in his lap.

“It’s brain and cognitive levels...” Cathal began to protest in anger at his test subject being thrown away like trash. After KYL-M, he was excited to demonstrate the newest clone in full.

“Are not worth it being an imperfect copy.” The Commander cut in with an annoyed grunt. “Either it serves as a mindless version of Venom and the like, or it doesn’t at all. No In-Betweens, no imperfections.”

Cathal nodded in understanding, narrowing his eyes for a moment, as though thinking of something, before giving another nod, his lips slowly splitting into a small, smug grin to himself. “Yes, I’ll dissect and destroy it, off site.”

“Good.” The Commander replied. “Is there anything else?”

When none answered, the Commander grunted in satisfaction. “Excellent. Doctor Cathal, continue your experiments. The rest of you, dismissed.”

The four agents lingered for a moment, looking among each other to make sure it was okay to leave, before slowly standing up and beginning to make their way to the exit. The agent, Okiatsumaru threw his arms over Kuishinbo and the Purple One’s shoulders, sighing to himself as they left. The other two didn’t seem to react, as though used to it.

“Man, am I the only one that thinks the boss is super weird?” Okiatsumaru wondered aloud, as they turned down the hall, followed closely by Kinsokumure.

“It’s none of our concern, Usui.” Kinzokumure remarked with a grunt, putting his hands in his pockets.

Okiatsumaru withdrew his hands, looking back at Kinzokumure in surprise. “Come on, Kinzo, Tai?”

The women, Tai, short for Tairana sighed to herself before shrugging. “I guess, but I don’t concern myself with the strange idiosyncrasies of our boss.”

“But….” Okiatsumaru began, before Kuishinbo cut in with a grunt.

“Remember the last Agent that even tried to look up the boss’ name?” He said, voice low and slightly terrified. “Chopped and found in Lake Ashino. I ain’t risking my neck for a weird boss who will kill us for looking at him wrong.”

Usui seemed to take the hint, nodding to himself and quieting down, before turning and watching Cathal leave, hurrying down one of the halls and not even turning to see the agents on their way, hurrying off to his labs to continue his experiments. Even the normally stoic Kinzokumure looked rather perturbed at the sight of the brittle, scurrying old man.

“That guy too, why the heck is he here?” Usui asked quietly, eyes darting around the group.

“Him? Just a Quirk Breeder and helps out with Quirk Marriages.” Tairana remarked with a shrug, looking back at Cathal with disdain. “I hear a lot of Pro-Heroes owe their careers to him helping with insemination and all that.”

“See, that bothers me. Quirks and heroes are starting to turn into some weird Eugenics/Royal Monarch thing,” Usui remarked with a shudder. “We’re turning into fine bred cattle.”

“Just focus on your job, and let Cathal continue cloning operations.” Kinzokumure ordered coldly, hiding his own expression of slight disgust as he looked at Cathal’s back. “We can talk the selective breeding angle later.”

The other Agents nodded, and left for their computers and offices to monitor and look at the information and monitoring, as Kinzokumure watched Cathal leaving for the labs below the holding cells in Ogasawara. He wouldn’t lie, the idea of Cathal’s job was disturbing even to the normally invaluable Agent. But his Boss had ordered them to work closely with Cathal, and Kinzokumure hadn’t gotten this far in the Hero Safety Commission and it’s related agencies by being Squeamish.

Still, there was some strange aura about the old man, an unspoken strength to his frail form and an alien intensity to his cold, studying gaze, like a Squid or shark analyzing the prey for a weakness. Whatever it was, Kinzokumure didn’t have the time nor resources to look into it. He just had to concentrate on Midoriya and his alien hellspawn.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Back at the camp, the reptilian member of the League, probably a new member, named Spinner, was yammering away, about Stain’s will, and holding the power of life and death in one’s hands in all situations. His companion, a burly rather masculine figure who he had, for some reason, called Big Sis Mages, merely looked annoyed with him. Tiger likewise, clenched a fist, focusing in rage at him, and vowing to pay Spinner back for so grievously scaring his comrade’s face.

“This is getting out of hand,” Mandalay muttered, before turning to the students. “Everyone, head back to the main camp, and stay put!”

Venom roared in Izuku’s mind. “Find Kota! He must be saved!”

Izuku didn’t have time to ask about Venom’s sudden care for Kota, but was already planning on going for it. “Mandalay!”

She turned to him, looking ready to hear him out. “I know where Kota is!”

“Get him.” She said with hesitating for a moment. 

Izuku transformed into Venom and bolted into the forests, disappearing into the woods in seconds, as Spinner and Magne briefly looked on in shock and surprise, before refocusing on Tiger and Mandalay, the two primary threats, as par the battle plan Dabi had laid out.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Meanwhile, blithely unaware of the danger encroaching around them, was Aizawa leading the Remedial class through the forest path and towards the main building, as they bitterly protested and sobbed over their being denied any fun time with the others. He sighed in annoyance at the sound, even if he couldn’t blame them for the attitude. This was for their own good though. Either they nip these problems in the bud, and evolve past their weaknesses, or it would hamper them down the line.

The only thing he did regret, besides the whining, was missing Izuku and Venom scare the other students during the test of courage. Part of that just seemed unfair to him.

“We want our reward!” Kaminari complained. “What ever happened to carrot and stick?”

“This is more like old celery and stick.”

“Celery is delicious, even slightly dated.” Aizawa remarked, surprised they wouldn’t think so.

He stopped for a moment, thinking he saw and heard someone in the trees around the path moving and watching him, staying still for several minutes to watch, motioning for his students to remain quiet. They looked at him for a moment, confused, before he shook it off and continued on.

“My eyes must be playing tricks on me.” He muttered aloud.

The group made their way into the central facility and into the classrooms set up for the remedial students. It was small of course, with a whiteboard at the front, and Vlad King and Monoma already inside, who, of course, broke into his usual hysterical mockery of the class on sight.

“Oh, how curious! The prestigious Class-1A is so much better, and yet they have six whole failures!” He declared with unhinged laughter.

“Dude, you failed too/” Kirishima muttered with annoyance, as they all began to sit down around him, hoping to keep some distance.

“Attention all students!” Mandalay’s voice suddenly sounded off in their heads. “Listen carefully!”

“Oh, it’s her Quirk. I love the shock it gives ya.” Mina remarked.

“Kinda sucks it’s one way.” Kaminari remarked.

“Pipe down.” Aizawa commanded.

“We currently have two villains in the vicinity, and there’s reason to believe there might be more!” She reported quickly, trying to keep her voice calm. “Head back to the main facility and do NOT engage.”

“Siktir.” Vlad cursed under his breath, as Aizawa, turning to the still open door, looked to Vlad.

“Stay with the students, I’m going to get the rest to safety.” He said, before bolting out the door in a dead-run.

As he made his way through the empty halls, he had to fight off a cold shiver down his spine as he made his way out. “How did our location get leaked?”

He slid to a stop in front of the doors, looking on in shock at the sight of the whole forest before him ablaze, a ghostly blue light cast over everything, as his eyes widened in horror. 

“Heh, looks like your concern has you distracted Eraser.” A low voice remarked to his left. He turned in shock, as the man raised his palm to him, and unleashed a torrent of flames, as blue as the ones in the forest, completely enveloping where he stood.

“We didn’t come for any of you pros, so just stay out of our way!” Dabi snarled, narrowing his eyes in disgust.

A second voice chuckled, clicking his claws against the stone. “I expected better from a Hero.”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
The class was thrown into a panic, those still in the forests trapped and isolated from each other, unsure how to get back, while Tiger and Mandalay engaged Magne and Spinner close combat. Kota was at the top of the mountain, overlooking the chaos and flames down below, was a confused and terrified Kota. He was in a cold sweat, not even sure what to do, with no one probably coming to get him. What did he even begin to do? His feet were locked in place, and he had a million thoughts shooting through his head at that moment, unable to focus in his fear and panic.

“Kota! Listen to me! You have to get back to camp!” Mandalay’s voice commanded within his mind. “I don’t know where you go to hide. I’m sorry Kota. I don’t know if I can save you. Please, get to the camp!”

“Well, well, well.” A deep booming voice remarked, as someone stepped up to him. “A face that wasn’t on the list.”

He turned quickly, seeing an absolutely towering, muscle-bond man, or he assumed it was a human man, approaching, his body obscured by a heavy black cloak, his face covered by a simple mask of some kind. It had no mouth, but around the cheeks of the mask were thousands of red dots, like a speaker, and a thine red line in the middle of the mask.

Kota looked on in terror. The man, for now, seemed easy going enough, but if there was an attack, he wasn’t going to be friendly, whoever he was. He gestured to himself with his thumb, showing arms as wide as Kota’s whole body with muscle, “That’s a cool hat ya got. Want to trade? They made me wear this dumb thing since I’m the new guy.”

Kota turned and bolted to the side where he could come up and down, hoping to escape the man. The titan gave a small chuckle to himself. “Didn’t even wait to hear me out.”

His legs seemed to grow thicker by a few inches, before he jumped, leaving shattered rock from where his feet had been planted, before smashing into the side of the cliff face to the right of Kota, and angling off to cut him off, his mask tossed away with a small click as his hood pulled back and away to reveal his face.

It was marred by a large scar down the left side of his face, from forehead to the tip of his mouth. His one good eye was wide with excitement and bloodlust, as he raised his remaining arm, muscle fibers exploding out from the skin and wrapping around it, ready to deliver a crushing blow. Kota knew this man. He had memorized that face, that mugshot since he first saw the news reports on his parents.

“We’re gonna have fun, just you and me, huh kiddo?” Muscular asked, looming over him and ready to deliver the killing blow.

He didn’t even cry out, too terrified and sickened to even move, as the man’s oversized fist moved to crush him. Before either could react, a shape black as night and slightly smaller then Muscular himself bolted from the mountain’s face, grabbing Kota and moving him away from the fight, even as the fist scrapped against the being, his pained grunt the only reward for Muscular’s endeavors.

Izuku landed, black fibers and tentacles retreating into his body, as he landed, setting Kota on the ground behind him, as his left arm dangled beside him, twisted and useless from Muscular’s hit.

“Hmm? Now you were on Shigaraki’s hit list.” Muscular remarked to himself, grinning madly at him.

‘I’m alone. I didn’t tell anyone about this.’ Izuku thought in a panic. ‘Can we even make it back to the others?’

“You are not alone.” Venom interjected into his thoughts. “The child needs us. Let’s show him who we are.”

“Kota, it’s going to be alright, understand?” Izuku yelled to him, as black biomass began to wrap around his body and limbs, snapping and bending his arm back into the proper shape, and healing it from injury. “We’re going to defeat him.”

“You’re….You’re gonna save him, all by yourself? Ha!” Muscular let loose a mocking, cold laugh, as the transformation completed, Venom’s reptilian maw and face overtaking Izuku’s own.

“Not alone.” Venom snarled with a leering grin. “Because, We. Are. Venom!”

“Cute, you gotta an edgy little name. Dabi and X would love ya!” Muscular remarked with a grin, shaking his head. “But I’ve seen what your type can do. You’re Jet Black, the Black Death to Criminals, the Death Bringer. I won’t be playing with my food this time around.”

He reached into his pocket, dumping out a dozen or so glass eyes he usually fitted over his hole, taking one covered in small teeth-like objects around the iris, and jamming into his eye, replacing the other, more plain red one.

“Let’s dance kid, show me what your little bodysuit can do!” Muscular roared, jumping and rushing forward, muscles enhancing his legs, tossing away the cloak from his beefy form. “I’ll consider this a test ride before I get my reward!”

Had he been human, it would’ve been impossible to react to the blinding speed, but with Venom’s keen sight and reaction abilities, Izuku and his Symbiote were easily able to anticipate the coming attack. Even with throwing up his arms to block the attack, however, did not guarantee he was at all ready for the sheer force of the strike. The strike smashed into Venom’s arm, air exploding out in a shockwave, as Venom was pushed back several feet. He wanted to ask about this ‘reward’, but he and Izuku were more focused on not dying or getting utterly annihilated by his strikes.

Venom hissed in shock at the force of the blow, before Muscular jumped forward and swung another pulverizing strike, smashing into Venom’s right arm, bone and symbiote matter bending and snapping under the force of the blow, before the Symbiote lashed out with a hook from his other arm, decking and knocking Muscular back a few steps, before swinging a powerful kick outwards and knocking Muscular into a rock wall, a small hole caved into from Muscular’s back, before he pulled himself out almost instantly and was on the attack again.

Venom snapped his other arm back into normal position, and went on the attack, striking into Muscular’s red, raw arms with his fists, hitting him multiple times with as much power as he could managed in each blow. The muscle fibers around his arm bent and groaned from each powerful hit, striking like a canonball, but didn’t buckle, Muscular merely grinning in delight, before lashing out with a powerful right hook, the hit sounding more like a shotgun blast then a punch, Venom’s jaw snapping out of place and fangs flying outwards. He backed away, groaning in pain, before Muscular swung up with his leg, kneeing him in the middle of the chest, the armored biomass and Izuku’s own ribs bending and cracking from the blow, as he went into the air, before Muscular jumped, prepared his fist and swung it down into Venom’s face again.

The symbiote smashed into the ground with stunning force, rock and debris sent up and around them, and as things began to clear, Muscular approached, laughing to himself.

“Hahaha! No blood, not yet, but this is fun either way!” He taunted, lumbering with a slight bow-leg, due to his over-sized leg muscles. “What was that, Ven? About you were gonna save him? How is that working for ya? Hoping I’ll tire myself out kicking the shit out of you?”

Venom got off his back, moving to his hands and knees shakily, groaning and struggling to speak, as he snapped ribs back into black, removed and digested away excess bone that had jammed itself into Izuku’s lung, and snapped their jaw and face into place once more.

“We….we will protect the innocent!” Venom growled, narrowing his eyes at him. “It’s what we do! Criminals such as you deserve no mercy!”

“Oh?” Muscular said with a chuckle. “I’ll give you a little break, and you can try and put your money where your slimy mouth is. Then, I’ll be seeing just how much blood’s in ya…!”

Before he could finish his threats and oaths of violence on Venom, a stone flew out and hit him in the back of the head. He turned in surprise more then anything, the pain little more then a glancing thing, little more then a pinch then anything else, but still annoying that his fight and bloodletting would interrupted so rudely.

The little brat had done it. Probably some misguided attempt to save the useless shithead that had ironically sworn to protect him. Muscular would deal with that brat in time, once he finished with pulverizing Izuku.

“Listen brat, I’m not sure you understand what’s going on, but if I can kill this idiot here, Shigaraki gave full permission for the killer to take his “Symbiote”, whatever the hell that is,” Muscular said with a chuckle, pointing with his thumb at Venom’s downed form, whose face bent in a grimace of surprise. “So unless you want to join him on the butcher’s table, I suggest you just scurry away like a rat and get out of my way!”

“The Waterhoses...My parents...did you torture them like this too?!” Kota demanded, tears rolling down his cheeks and welling from his eyes. Izuku felt his eyes widen within Venom’s ‘face’, hardly able to believe what had happened just now.

“Waterhoses? No way! This gotta be fate or destiny or somethin’!” Muscular remarked with a hint of surprise. “Your parents were the ones that gave me this glass eye! You think I hold a grudge against em?”

“Kota, leave! We won’t let you get harmed on our account!” Venom yelled to him desperately, before turning to Muscular, struggling to get to his feet, before falling down again. “Focus on us! We are your targets!”

“No thanks kiddo and Goop, I need to straighten this brat out.” Muscular, stepping away and towards Kota, his usual grin not disappearing from his face. “Listen, I wanted to kill that day, and your parents tried to stop me. We all tried to accomplish our goals, and things played out from there.”

He chuckled darkly, as he approached, looming over Kota, who froze in terror at the malefic aura emanating from him. “What won’t do is fools like you and this one, who can’t back up their words! So I’m gonna cripple you, and when I rip Venom right off Midoriya’s body, you’ll be his first victims!”

Venom jumped to his feet and leapt at Muscular’s back, claws out-stretched, fangs flashing as he released a feral roar in rage. Muscular turned with his usual smile, clenching his fists in preparation. “I’d know that would get you moving, asshole!”

“Your attacks on the innocents ends here!” Venom roared back, sending out three tentacles from his ribs right at Muscular, wrapping around his right arm tightly before he could react, not that he cared much. “We’ll strangle you by your intestines for your crimes!”

“Ah! Not very heroic sounding! Why fly with this twerp, wouldn’t rather someone who let’s you spill blood to your hearts’ content!” Muscular laughed, pulling back his left fist for his punch.

“I gave up bloodlust for something more!” Venom snapped back, tightening his fist for the blow to come, eyes narrowed with enough intense hatred to terrify even Kota. “I intend to be something more with Deku!”

He swung a haymaker with all his might, smashing into Muscular’s face, smashing the artificial eye and sending it flying out of his skull, and sending him flying back, digging his knuckles in deep, making sure he was receiving the full weight of the strike, before releasing his tentacles, and sending him flying into the side of the mountain. Dust and rocks flew outwards from the strike.

The dust began to clear, Venom standing in the shattered and broken rocks, head low and body bent and stooped, before he straightened and growled, his eyes unfocused for a moment, before focusing in on Kota, who started backing away towards the edge of the cliff in instinctual fear, before Venom raised a claw to stop him.

“Hold on, hold on little one.” Venom growled, stumbling for a moment, before correcting himself, and walking towards Kota. “Hold on little Ky’ilar.”

Venom began to melt and fold away, their form shrinking back into Izuku, who took a deep, tired breath as he approached, coming to a stop by Kota, who watched in stunned silence. His mouth agap for a moment, he finally found the words he was looking for after all of that.

“You...you really aren’t a Quirk?” He managed out, eyes wide in disbelief. “And...you, did all of that...”

“We protect people, even if we’re not the traditional mold of a Hero.” Izuku managed, his voice almost hollow and husky, nodding to him with a tired smile “It’s what we do.”

He took a deep breath, looking back over the scene before him, of the flames consuming the forest, before turning back to Kota. “We need to get back to camp, and…..”

His words were interrupted by the sound of rock and stone being tossed aside and thrown away by the rising form of Muscular, who had encased himself within a circular shield of muscled tissue and fibers, an almost gigantic ball on human legs stumbling from the ruins of the cliff face, before these retracted and folded back, Muscular grinning like a mad man, as stumbled back onto the rocks with Izuku and Kota. His scar had a new addition around his jaw, a new deep scar cutting from above his lip to across his cheek, and slicing through the middle of the old one.

“You really are something special, ain’t ya?” Muscular remarked with a laugh, before wincing and popping his jaw into place. “You’d waste all that power with a kid with no real Quirk?”

‘We….we hit him with everything we had.’ Izuku thought in terror, Venom’s tendrils and mass beginning to coat him again, as Muscular pulled another glass eye out and clicked it into place over his own. “Back off!”

“No thanks. Now that I can see what these things can do, whatever these Symbiotes are, I’m taking yours.” Muscular remarked. “And then we’re having all kinds of fun!”

“Venom, what he’s saying, isn’t possible, right?” Izuku asked within the symbiote, as it overtook his body.

“I’m loyal to you, but a strong host could enact mental domination and force me to follow their whims,” Venom explained mentally, as he prepared to face the beast of a man. “And combined with his heightened aggression, it would damage me, mentally.”

Venom straightened, and growled at the Villain approaching them. “But for Kota’s sake, we will never let you win!”  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Bakugou at first had never believed in the idea of “The silence is deafening”. To him it was meaningless saying, inherently contradictory and stupid, like so many other sayings like “Take a leaf from someone-else’s book” or stupid sayings like that. Now, however, he was beginning to understand what that meant. Despite a villain attack going down, he couldn’t hear anything. Every animal had seemingly scattered into the safety of their burrows and nests, and none of the students around them were saying anything, or were too far away to be heard.

Worse of all, he was stuck stomping around the woods with the Half-and-Half Bastard. Getting murdered by any number of the Villain assholes would’ve been preferred to this whole thing. He was carrying one of the extras from Class B on his back, as the two made their way through the forest, the slight, musky air of the poison gas still in the air.

“We need to get back to camp and get out of here as quick as we can.” Todoroki remarked, carefully measuring his steps to keep his unconscious passenger safe. “The gas seems thinner here, so I think the Quirk gets weaker the further we get.”

“Don’t order me around!” Bakugou grumbled through his hand. “I knew being stuck with you would be awful.”

“Can you just focus on getting out of here?” Todoroki snapped back in mild annoyance, before noticing someone kneeling on the path ahead of them. “Who is that, Tokoyami, Shoji?”

The figure was dressed all in back it seemed, so it was probably Tokoyami, but he was too tall, even kneeling down on the ground, to be that. Todoroki and Bakugou both stopped for a moment, as the figure shifted slightly, revealing a severed arm laying on the ground, drool dripping down on it. Even Shoto, usually not one to react too heavily, looked disgusted and shocked to his core for a moment, both merely watching the strange figure as his words began to carry over to their area of the path.

“Flesh...beautiful flesh, flawless flesh!” He yammered, teeth clanking loudly at times, as his body shook with anticipation and passion. “Gah! Too tantalizing, too delicious! Have to focus on work!”

He turned, his lips peeled back, his face, except his mouth, covered in a strange binding gear resembling a straitjacket or bondage suit. Spittle trailed down from his lips as he watched them for a moment, his eyes seemingly hidden, but from what could be seen in his body language he was aware of them, and was not at all friendly. He rose to his feet, turning completely to face them.

“More meat.” He mumbled to himself, as even Bakugou felt his blood running cold, and his breath catch in his throat.  
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  
Needless to say, between the smoke and fire, toxic gas, and villains and heroes duking it out, it was easy to miss the two individuals taking their leave of the place. The humanoid raptors of Scale Clan, erstwhile allies of the Church of New Darkness and it’s devotees of Knull. Even with all the precautions taken by Aizawa and his fellow Heroes, it had been too easy for them to track them and leak their location to All for One.

The first, a large, broad-shouldered Raptoran being, covered in red scales, with slight needle-like plums from the back of his head, spoke into an encrypted phone. “We were happy to be of service to All for One, original master of the Underworld, and in exchange, the Church merely asks considerations be kept when our goals align.”

“I’ll consider it.” The Master of the League of Villains remarked. “But, though I don’t know everything, I know enough about your little cult.”

The being remained as cool as a cucumber, hardly reacting to his remarks. “We are merely dissatisfied with the system and how it intrudes on our religious rites and traditions. Helping you, helps us.”

“I wish that were so.” All for One remarked cryptically. “But know this, I’ve tolerated your interference, but if you keep following Tomura, I will make an example of your agent, then you two, to your leaders. Do you understand?”

“Our organization is not...” The being began.

“Going to get in my way.” All for One finished abruptly. “Please, keep in mind why I ruled everything from the shadows for so long. It would be a shame for your practitioners to start disappearing, wouldn’t it?”

The being lingered for a moment, shifting his claws into the dirt, as his peer watched the fights below with a keen eye, turning to him with a nervous glance. “We will relay your request...”

“My decision.” All for One cut in. After all, a suggestion meant it could be ignored, and nothing All for One did, with few exceptions, was to be ignored.

“Your decision to our leadership.” Red-scale remarked, as the line went dead, before he turned to his peer, who as slightly shorter, his scales an ocean blue and with actual feathers behind his head, rather then quills. “We take our leave.”

“What is the situation?” Blue-Scale asked nervously, looking around once nervously, to make no random students had come to pester them. “It didn’t sound good.”

“All for One obviously used our information, but we’ll have to keep a distance from now,” Red-Scale remarked. “He seems nervous of our...closeness to the Hand of Knull. He’s ordered we stay away.”

“Supreme Prophet and the High Prophets will not be happy.” Blue-Scale remarked nervously again, scratching at his neck with a hand claw.

“We can contact them after we take our leave.” Red-Scale replied assuredly. “We should leave now during the fighting. We’ve done all we can to set the seeds, and the longer we linger, the sooner we get caught.”

As they took their leave, All for One sat within his chair, tapping his fingers on it’s rest for a long time, humming slightly to himself. Given his wind pipe and lungs had been damaged almost beyond repair, it had been a long time since he could just sit back and think, without having to endear painful, invasive surgeries and repairs by his Doctor. He was good company, but All for One sometimes wished for solitude, and did he need it now more then ever.

Kurogiri was near at hand, having returned to receive orders in person from him, and sensed his master’s pensiveness. “Is everything satisfactory, Master?”

“Yes Kurogiri, perfect,” He replied absentmindedly, before turning his head as best as he could with all the wires and tubes in his neck and wrists. “Riot, are you still awake?”

“Always.” The Silver Symbiote replied from the shadows.

“Do you know a Church of New Darkness by any chance?” He asked. He had caught snippets of the Red-Scale’s words and such, and the name stuck out as...wrong to him.

Riot thought over his words for a moment, tapping a claw against his chin, eyes narrowed slightly. “I can’t say that I have. Is it some sort of Earth religion?”

“I know them all, and the underground cults, but this one has been prying lately. Most annoying, is how they seemed to have appeared from no where.” All for One remarked. He wondered if his long retirement at All Might’s hands was the cause for it. A power vacuum could lead to a Cult, after all. He shook his head slightly, setting his mind to things closer to home. “Nothing to concern ourselves with, just yet.”

“Should I be unleashed upon them?” Riot asked, perhaps a little too eagerly, though All for One didn’t blame him. Based on what he had seen of Riot and Venom, Symbiotes seemed to not do well without something to fight.

“No.” All for One replied, his voice soft but commanding. “Kurogiri will be taking you to Tomura.”

“You finally give me a worthy host.” Riot remarked with a cold, murderous grin.

“He is ready for you.” All for One replied, a twisted smile of his own forming on the tattered remains of his face. “Let all come to tremble with fear at all that you two will accomplish.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the Big Training Camp has come to the fic. I took extra time to work on this and next chapter as a double feature so no one would have to wait.
> 
> As far as the characters at the start, the Anti-Symbiote Taskforce Agents are their own little miniboss squad for when Ven and others face off with them.
> 
> Usui Okiatsumaru's name comes from 薄い (Usui the word for thin and diluted), Oki (遠洋 Open sea), atsu ( 厚 Thick) and Sumaru from (昴 gathering or company). I made him to be something of the voice of reason in the taskforce. Tairana (平らな Flat) I based on the likes of Mina or Curious, and was originally supposed to be blue skin with red eyes, like a Chiss, and is the cold professional.
> 
> Cormac Cathal is a character whose going to tie into some larger things at work, and the Boss of the Taskforce will remain unseen for now. The two Symbies Doctor Cathal made in his lab will also play a bigger role later, though It should be obvious who they are.
> 
> oh yeah, and Venom's nicknames from Muscular are based on those in the Russian dub of the Animated series "Black Death" and "Death Bringer".


	33. Fire in the Sky

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Venom and Izuku continue their fight against the VAS

Venom quickly morphed his right hand into a shield, Muscular slamming his fist into it, aiming for their skull. Izuku fought back the urge to tremble and shake with terror at the sight of Muscular’s attack. He and Venom had made it their goal to protect Kota, and they had no plans of giving up the fight now. He slammed another punch into the shield of biomass, intending to break through it. Venom was not about to break, any defense he held, to a human, but even Muscular was testing the limits of his power. As the maddened criminal pulled back for another swing, Venom suddenly dispersed his shield back into his mass, leaning back and stepping aside, letting him staggered forward, as Venom slammed his left elbow into Muscular’s stomach, sending him falling to his back.

As he hit the ground, Muscular lashed out with his feet, smashing into Venom’s shins and knocking the Symbiote backwards, as they released a howl of rage and surprise. Muscular kicked himself up, grinning from ear to ear again as he stepped over to Venom, taking his time, chuckling to himself, his remaining eyes a glow with delight. 

“We are not finished yet.” growled Venom to himself, hissing with rage, trying to rise to his feet, before Muscular stomped down on his head, sending the back of the Symbiote’s head into the rock and stone.

“Good, cause I’m not having much fun yet!” Muscular declared with a laugh. “It sucks you can’t show me that blood! I’d love to see the weak little Quirkless bastard underneath squirmin’ and cryin’!”

Before either host or Symbiote could question how he knew about Izuku’s condition, Muscular simply grabbed him by the neck, hoisted him up and threw him into a rock wall. Cracks and fissures formed and splintered off from the point of impact, as Venom struggled to move, trying to pry himself from the rocks, before Muscular grabbed, tore him free, and smashed him into the mountain face again. Venom could feel the world spinning all around him, and knew that Izuku had suffered an extreme brain injury and fractures along his skull. But just as fast as he could fix those injuries, Muscular was creating all new ones for the two.

‘I don’t want to die, I don’t want to die!’ Izuku thought desperately, tears running down his face.

‘We are not going to die!’ Venom declared, swinging an uppercut into Muscular chest, then a powerful backhand into the scarred side of his face, knocking him backwards and giving Venom time to heal Izuku’s body, healing the brain and skull injuries, mending his ribs back together and reknitting muscle fibers once more.

Venom swung a punch into Muscular’s face, keeping him stunned, before slashing into his chest and arms with his claws, aiming to slice deep into the flesh of the marauding villain. But, as soon as he had cut into the being’s arms, more muscle fibers were sprouting outwards to shield and armor his body. Venom backed away, realizing he wasn’t making any headway, and Muscular’s fibers he made in and around his body.

As he sliced into them, Venom did indeed cut them, and damage them, but bleeding was near non-existent, while those same fibers could heal and reknit themselves together once more. He backed away a few paces, putting space between himself and Muscular, as he and Izuku tried to think out their next approach to things. Muscular, however, was giving them that chance, already pressing the attack again.

“We need a new strategy here,” Izuku said in a panic. “Nothing we’re doing is even hurting him!”

“I’m all ears.” Venom growled to himself, as hastily blocked and parried Muscular’s barrage of punches and strikes aimed at him.

“Come on, you piece of shit, I thought you were gonna protect him?” Muscular yelled, slamming a solid haymaker into the side of Venom’s head, knocking him off balance, before grabbing him by the throat. “Those who can’t back up their words with deeds are the lowest!”

‘Don’t worry, we can’t be strangled or have our neck snapped while in this form,’ Venom stated mentally, struggling to pry Muscular’s hands off of him. ‘Just need to get him off.’

“Gee, thanks. I can look forward to instead having him pop my head off like a lego!” Izuku yelled in a panic, as Venom grabbed into Muscular’s wrists, before trying to tear them off his throat.

He swung a punch into Muscular’s chest, then another, before tearing his hands off his neck, grabbing him by his own throat, and swipping his legs out from under him, slamming him to the ground. Venom steadied himself as the ground shook and crumbled underneath both of them. If they weren’t careful, there wouldn’t be a mountain left to fight on. Muscular seemed stunned for a moment, and Venom decided that was the best time to get back and away from him and make sure Kota was alright.

The boy was huddled away in a cave-like enclave, having gotten there as Muscular and Venom tore through the area in their battle. He watched from the mouth of the small cave, catching the fight as best he could, and trembling slightly at Venom’s approach.

“Are you alright Kota? Are you injured?” Venom asked, his booming voice marred with concern and worry.

“Are you...actually worried about him?” Izuku asked, rather surprised.

“You’re a terrible influence.” Grumbled Venom to himself, as he held out a hand to him. “Come on, little Ky’ilar.”

He stopped for a moment, turning in surprise as his senses went off, just in time for Muscular to slam into him shoulder-first and tackle him away. Venom roared in surprised, as he was carried off, before Muscular threw him to the ground. The Symbiote struggled to get up, before the bottom of Muscular’s boot smashed into his chest, cracking the ground beneath. Muscular kicked him onto his front, before lifting both fists up, and smashing them down onto Venom’s back. The Symbiote and host struggled to get up, groaning and crying out in pain, before Muscular slammed down again.

“Talk away! Come on, weren’t you gonna stop me and save the brat?” Muscular demanded with a laugh. “I coulda swore you were gonna do that! Maybe it’s the weak host or whatever holding ya back?”

Venom snapped trying to rise to his feet, eyes wide with rage. “He is not weak!”

Muscular merely kicked his face in, a half dozen fangs flying out as Venom slide across the ground, face reforming in an instant. He groaned to himself, struggling to his feet, as Muscular stepped forward, chuckling to himself, his remaining eye wide with bloodlust.

“Should...Should I join him?” Venom asked, back hunched, the surface of his body rippling slightly.

“What?! How can you say that?! I thought we were a team?!” Izuku demanded in shock and horror. “Do you know what he’ll do with your power?”

“Maybe I can steer him away from you and Kota before he can do any damage or dominate my mind.” Venom suggested tiredly. “I would sacrifice my independence if it meant saving you two.”

“We’re not out of this yet!” Izuku declared, focusing his rage on Muscular. “We’ll keep fighting, no matter what happens!”

Venom thought for a moment, glaring as Muscular slowly approached, seemingly taking his time and enjoying how he could draw out his pain and suffering. He enhanced the muscles in his legs once more, before jumping straight at Venom, pulling back to deliver another haymaker and utterly annihilate Venom and his host in a single strike. The Symbiote narrowed his white eyes, drool dripping down from his fangs as they prepared themselves.

Once Muscular reached the apex in his “flight”, Venom snapped an arm forward, sending a long, thick tentacle of biomass into Muscular’s chest, and yanking back hard, pulling the Villain right into him. Muscular was to surprised to put up much resistance, and, as he got closer, Venom unleashed a wild haymaker of their own into the man’s face, knocking back and stunning him for a moment, his right hand thrown up to try and defend, before Venom, roaring ravenously, snapped forward like a striking serpent, and bit down on Muscular’s hand with a wet, hard crunch and snap, tearing it from the wrist and devouring it.

“Venom!” Izuku shouted in alarm, as the Symbiote kicked Muscular away with a stomp to the face, sending him end over end and away from the two. 

It had been a long time since Venom had eaten anyone’s flesh, after he and Izuku and specifically agreed he wouldn’t eat anyone, and the sight and feeling of Venom quickly devouring even a hand was almost too much to look at.

“I...I apologize. This battle...getting hungry...” He managed, running his long tongue over his fangs and lips. “We’ll need lots of chocolate after this one.”

Blood pooled heavily at their feet and all around the area where Muscular had fallen, blood pouring out from his wrist as Venom growled, twitching and shaking slightly at the scent of blood and the sight of a body ready to devour. Regardless, this slip-up would not stop him from becoming a hero like Izuku wanted. A hero that avoid eating others. No matter how delicious their brains and organs were.

He staggered away, sinking into Izuku’s body. He looked more haggard, his eyes bloodshot and with heavy bags under them, large bruises and leis ions riding up and down his arms from how much he had struggled against Muscular’s power and strength, his burn scar across his right arm far more read and raw then before, almost looking fresh and newly created now.

Regardless he put on a brave smile, going to the cave where Kota had hidden, watching the fight in shock and horror, frozen in place as Izuku. The Hero Hopeful held out a hand to him.

“Come on Kota, we can leave this place.” He said, as Kota took his hand. “We’re getting back to camp, alright? Get on my back, it will be faster if I carry you, okay?”

Kota silently obeyed, still looking up in amazement at Izuku after everything he had done. Even eating Muscular’s hand was not as horrifying it should’ve been for him. Izuku and Venom had put themselves on the line for him. It was something he would never forget.

As Izuku made his way towards the slopes, leading to the forests and the rest of the camp, stones and rock began to rumble from Muscular’s position, as Izuku swore under his breath, transforming into Venom once more, and gently putting Kota down. Muscular stepped out of the rock, smiling once more at Izuku, muscle fibers gathering and twisting around his wrist to keep the blood from pouring out.

“This has been fun, but we’re done here.” Muscular remarked with a vicious grin. “Before I rip your heart out your chest, can you tell me where I can find a kid named Bakugou?”

“Kaachan?” Izuku asked in surprise, as Venom growled in agitation. Why were they after Bakugou?

“Doesn’t matter. You’re finished.” Muscular remarked, stepping out, as muscle fibers wormed and squirmed all along his body, building up once more. “I’m gonna get back tenfold for costing me a hand.”

“If you’re so upset, we can also eat your head.” Venom growled, holding out an arm beside himself, looking back at Kota. “This is going to get violent, step back, and if we fall, run as fast as you can back to camp, understand?”

Kota staggered backwards, the muscles in Venom’s arms enhancing and strengthening themselves, as Muscular grinned broadly at the coming battle with the Symbiote. Whatever came next, was bound to be a fight to remember. Losing the hand was bad, sure, but he was going to, if Shigaraki kept his promise, get to keep Venom, and all the abilities that came with. Anything else after would be a victory lap. He just had to win.

Venom stepped towards the monstrous villain, as more and more muscle fibers began to build up and form around his body and mass, taking the form of an organic wrecking ball. Venom pulled back, and swung a punch, connecting right into the center of the muscle mass. The earth cracked and broke beneath the two as they clashed, strength against strength, as Venom growled trying to hold back the near unstoppable force before him.

Bones cracked, muscle fibers snapped, but Izuku and Venom both agreed. Their body would break before they gave up.

“Man, kid you are really something else!” Muscular declared in excitement, sounding more like a kid going to an adult movie then someone in a life and death battle.

“For once in your life, shut the @#$% up!” Venom roared in rage, struggling against the sheer volume of power Muscular had unleashed against them.

He struggled, throwing all of his inhuman muscle and power into the strike, and pushing against the sheer mass of Muscular, trying to hold back the villain, but, to no avail. As he loomed high over the Symbiote, ready to utterly crush him. Venom gave a small (by his standards) smile, as he was crushed under Muscular’s weight, seemingly shrinking away and back into Izuku’s body.

Izuku panicked for a moment, tears rolling down his face. ‘This is it. I’m gonna die. I’m sorry mom, I’m sorry...’

“None of that. Catch your breath. You’ve given me an idea.” Venom hissed gently to him, trying to keep him calm.  
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“Man, you really are a pro!” Dabi remarked with a grin, as X stood besides him, preparing his hand claws, the skin and flesh of his fingers splitting in half as the born shot out and extended forwards. Aizawa had, in the brief time between the blast and Dabi’s first words to him, jumped onto the side of the building just over the doorway, balancing on his boots for a moment.

Dabi threw his hand up as the smoke from his last blast clear, not realizing the few embers and puffs of smoke from his own hand had also cleared. X’s own fingers had repaired themselves, the claws receding back in slowly. 

“Not so fast, either of you.” Aizawa declared, as Dabi’s eyes widened, perhaps surprised his Quirk was on reactive now.

X lurched slightly, looking stricken for a moment, before shaking it off as Aizawa launched his scarf at Dabi, wrapping around his arms and pinning them to the rest of his body. As he jumped down, he yanked the first villain towards him, smashing his knee into Dabi’s face, and throwing him to the ground, turning as X tried to land a hook punch into Aizawa’s face. He leaned back, dodging the punch, and swinging his knee up into X’s chest. But rather then going down, he swung another punch, Aizawa parrying it aside with his forearm, surprised at his strength and speed.

He wasn’t a Nomu, he could tell that much, but he was trained, and he was stronger then average, even without a Quirk. Aizawa wasn’t one, however, to get into an extended fist-fight with villains, even if they were trained. Especially if they were trained. He swiped out with his leg behind X’s own, and knocked him to the ground, and as Dabi rose to his feet, spun him around again to slam him into the ground, before pinning him, carefully grabbing his wrist and shoulder. Another branch of his capture cloth sprang forward and wrapped around X effortlessly.

“Alright, one of you is gonna talk, and you’re gonna talk fast.” Aizawa remarked coldly, glaring down at Dabi. “You first. What are you after and who are all your friends?”

“My what?” Dabi asked.

“Wrong answer.” Aizawa said gruffly, breaking his arm with a snap. He knew, partially, that he probably wasn’t going to get accurate info from this one, but putting him through the wringer was just what he deserved for trying to harm his students. “Your right arm’s next. Try to do this logically. I’d hate for police to have to carry you away in a stretcher.”

“Might as well keep going, or go to X, because I ain’t sayin’ a word.” Dabi remarked, eyes filled with hatred and pain from his injured arm, but keeping his voice low and even.

X, for his part, had gotten to his feet, struggling against the binding cloth, his eyes wide with rage, the yellow and red orbs focused on Aizawa. “You fucks. Just like all the rest. The dirty fucking pigs that would torture and dump us in the gutters like trash.”

His muscles seemed to flare out and quiver, expanding and filling out further. The teen was lanky and lean, just like Dabi beneath him, but slightly more muscled, but he seemed to be getting stronger, bone claws beginning to split from his fingers, the bone spurs and growths in his face extending and shifting. Aizawa refocused his glare, the muscle and bone growths stopping.

Whatever Quirk he had, it had to be a strange one. Aizawa did not let it distract him however. “No matter what you think or do, you’re still gonna talk, got it?”

“I’ll rip off your head and spit down your neck.” He snarled, voice suddenly deeper and more barritone then before.

“Teacher! Mister Aizawa!” Tenya yelled, leading the rest of the class into the main encampment.

Dabi shot up and kicked out, knocking Aizawa back, even as the cloth remained wrapped around him. He struggled to his feet, wobbling slightly. “I’m just about finished for this round.”

He turned to Aizawa, smiling wryly for a moment, as Aizawa stood up quickly and position himself to keep both Villains under control. “I can see why you’re a UA teacher. I’m just wondering if you got what it takes to save them in end. See ya soon!”

Aizawa pulled back to restrain him, only for the scarf to slide right through, Dabi’s breaking down and melting into mud, as Aizawa’s eyes widened in shock. ‘The fire he shot earlier wasn’t his Quirk?’

Briefly distracted once more, X rose to his feet, spiked blades shooting from his elbows and slicing through the scarf with ease, the flesh of his elbows split open, blood dripping to the ground, and as Aizawa turned to try and train his Quirk-neutralizing glare on him, X merely slide his foot deep into the ground, kicking dirt and dust into his face, and forcing him to close his eyes and back away with a grunt, throwing up his hand to block it out and clear out his face.

‘Too many young dipshits and maybe two pros, I’m out.’ X thought, taking a deep breath to calm himself, and sprinting into the forests.

Aizawa turned to the Iida and the rest of the students. “Get everyone inside, no one pursue him!”

He sprinted off into the forests right after X, focused on getting him back, even as he applied his eyedrops. He wasn’t sure what was going on with that Villain, but he would be the one to restrain and bring him back at all costs.  
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“Ah! You’re no good Dabi! You got your ass handed to ya!” Twice declared, slicing his thumb back and forth in front of his neck. “By a magic scarf dude!”

“Really? That was fast.” Dabi remarked dryly.

“What?! Don’t say that! Better to frame this as the pro being too strong. It’s important to mind your self esteem, even on a perilous mission.” Twice said, his voice taking a more refined, aristocratic tone.

“Whatever Twice, just make another one of me, and make it fast,” Dabi ordered. “X is gonna need back up.”

“Another small-fry comin’ right up! Leave it to me!” Twice replied, giving the thumbs up as he flipped him off.

Dabi pressed his hand against the wood, as fire burned out, and Twice got to work. X was probably leading any teachers away, hopefully, while Magne and Spinner engaged the two other pros. He wondered how the rest of the squad was doing. He wondered if any had encountered the kid with the ‘Symbiote’ Quirk as Shigaraki had called it.

He didn’t much care for what went down, but part of him wondered about that. Whatever end goals he had, if he could add a secondary Quirk, as Shigaraki had made it sound, then he might have it easier accomplishing his goals.  
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Muscular was so focused on utterly crushing Izuku, and peeling whatever was left of Venom off of him, he was completely surprised when a splash of water hit him in the side of his face. He turned in shock, seeing an utterly horrified and trembling Kota, hands with water dripping from them, starring him down.

“L...Leave him alone!” Kota yelled.

“Just hold on alright? Hold on! I’ll get to you later okay? Wait your turn!” Muscular said, not wanting to lose focus on his first victim.

“We never intended to let you harm anyone ever again!” Venom boomed from beneath him, as multiple black tendrils, as thick as an elephant’s truck, exploded out from under Muscular’s spherical mass, writhing around, before shooting into his body.

With as much effort as he could still manage, the tendrils pried in as deep as they could, splitting the fibers apart in large chunks, still attached to Muscular’s body, but the natural armor he had formed around himself had been sundered with all of Venom’s effort, as the Villain himself felt his eye bulge in shock and horror. Venom pushed back, groaning in rage as both hands pushed in, shoving Muscular back, drool and spittle running down his fangs.

He was smaller now, equal in Izuku’s height and mass, his head having what looked like two rabbit ears protruding from his head, but the same wide, fang-filled smile. With his armor broken, and his face exposed, Venom gave a wide smile, pulling back his fist. Having focused all his Muscle fibers into this ball form, he had no defense, no way to block or counter, as Venom snarled and growled like a lion readying the killing blow.

“No one threatens those under our protection and walks away!” Venom roared with a sadistic glean in his eye and tone in his voice. “And they don’t crawl away either!”

Muscular wanted to say something, wanted to curse him one last time, struggle and deny the lose. But a small smile came to his face as he accepted the inevitable. They had both wanted to do what they wanted, and both had to deal with the consequences.

‘Well played, you little shit.’ Was his last thought, before a colossal punch collided into the side of his face with the two scars and his glass eye, muscles breaking and receding into his body as he lost consciousness, his jaw snapped out of place, and he was sent flying off into the side of the mountain. Rock and stone went flying out from the point of impact, as Venom stood once more, in his Deku form, but just as tall and commanding as ever before.

Kota watched, sobbing uncontrollably at the sight, thought back to what Mandalay had said before, when his parents had first passed away, when he thought they had left alone in all the world. Words he thought were just meaningless drivel.

“Kota, it’s true your parents went before they were ready. It’s because of their sacrifice, that so many more are alive today.”

He wiped away desperately at his eyes, trying to hold back the tears. “Why...you don’t even know me! Why would you…?”

“I hope one day you’ll understand, that some cane come along that you can call...”

Venom retracted all of his tentacles into himself once more, standing tall and commanding, raising his fists and roaring to the skies. It was terrifying, this demon of black sinew and fangs as long as his forearm, burning with rage and threatening to rip out organs. It looked like a beast out of his nightmares.

But, on that night, he had found someone he could call….

“My Hero!”

Venom turned to him, shaking for a moment, before straightening. “Kota, Kota, are you alright?”

“I...me? I should be asking you that!” He said with a trembling voice. “Why did you two save me, after all of that?!”

“We told you, we are Venom, we protect the innocent.” Venom replied softly, nodding to him, before turning to Muscular. “He really took everything from us, and I think all we did was knock him out.”

Venom drew back, his mouth opening wide and splitting open, as Izuku’s face revealed itself, the black, swirling patterns in his eyes also vanishing out of sight, returning to their normal green color. “Listen, Kota, we need you for one more thing, okay?”

“Wha…?”

“With this fire, every path is blocked off, and our Other is weak to fire,” Izuku explained gently, breathing hard. “That’s where you come in. Your Quirk can stop some of this, okay?”

“But why are we doing this?”

“I need to warn others. If the villain attackers are anything like him, we need to be ready.” Izuku said, as Venom’s face shifted and squirmed back over his body again like a twisted mask, Venom’s voice taking over. “Now, get on our back, and hang on tight.”

Venom turned, laying one knee on the ground, and creating tendrils from his body to help Kota up, and as he wrapped his arms gently around Venom’s neck, the Symbiote redirected the mass to gently wrapped around Kota’s body, keeping him secure. With that done, Venom stood and bolted off into the forests, leaving the now cratered, ruined mountain behind him.  
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X ran through the forests, bolting through and around trees, flipping through branches, and moving with the practiced flexibility and precision of a gymnast. And yet, as he looked back, he found himself surprised Aizawa was still keeping up with him, right on his tail, but just out of range of his capture cloth. He cursed himself for not finishing off Aizawa in some way while Dabi was fighting him. He was too much to deal with without his bone claws.

He was so busy looking behind him at the pursuing hero, that he almost crashed into the bestial creature stamping through the forest, carrying itself on all fours like some mutated gorilla. He slide to a stop, his eye-yellow eyes widening in shock and amazement, as the creature bared it’s fangs, growling at him, as though daring him to come closer.

“No way! You’re Jet Black, the Vagrant King!” X declared in amazement, sounding like a groupie who had just meet his favorite rock star on the streets. “You and Stain, you guys are somethin’ else, man!”

“Stop calling us that! We are Venom!” He growled, barring his fangs at X. Venom mentally groaned to himself, worried that, like Stain, his actions in the past had inspired some kind of groupie to go and do all this.

The Bone-riddled villain narrowed his eyes in an unbelieving fashion. Quirks like that don’t appear out of the blow. It was impossible for this ‘Venom’ and for Jet Black to be different figures. He looked closely, noticing a frightened kid with a horned hat on. Even if he was ordered by Shigaraki, it didn’t feel right, going after him with a kid.

“This just ain’t right.” He remarked, looking back to Aizawa closing in again, before turning to Venom. “You and the kid stay safe, okay?”

He bolted off, disappearing into the dark, as Aizawa came up, eyeing Venom wearily, who carefully, with two of his tendrils, handed Kota off to him.

“Take Kota to safety, we had to save him, make sure he stays away from any villains!” Venom declared, before shrinking down and melting away into Midoriya’s body.

“Wait...” Aizawa tried to say, before Izuku broke into a long tangent of his.

“The Villains are here for Kaachan, I need to get there and stop them!” Izuku rambled on, gesturing to the rest of the forest.

“Midoriya wait. You went and fought a villain again, didn’t you?” Aizawa asked carefully, carefully cradling Kota. “Broke those Quirk laws, right?”

“I mean...” Midoriya said, thinking back to what the Police chief had said.

“But that’s not a Quirk, is it?” Aizawa asked pointedly, knowing full well how the Chief had worded it after their fight. “That Venom of yours?”

Izuku froze up, worried of what came next. He wondered if Aizawa would arrest him or take him away with the other villains here. Instead, the scruffy Hero merely sighed to himself.

“Right now my goal is to protect my students, including you.” He said calmly, his face an unemotive mask. “Go to Mandalay, and tell her exactly what I tell you.”

Izuku listened, Venom silent and slightly worried within his body, as Aizawa carefully explained his instructions. Venom wondered if there was a hammer to fall, some sort of punishment that would await them for lying to the Academy, but Aizawa didn’t seem interested in that.

“As of now, making sure your classmates come out alive is my goal.” Aizawa finished up, his voice still calm and even, despite his lingering mistrust and uncertain emotions right now. “When we get back, you’ll explain everything to me, and we’ll sort this out, understand?”

“Understood, sir.” Izuku said clearly, giving a definitive nod.

“Don’t go getting yourselves killed. Either of you.” Aizawa said, before reaching into his pocket and taking out a kit-kat, and tossing it to him.

“We won’t.” Izuku said, quickly transforming into Venom, tore into the package and chocolate and greedily devoured it in a few bites, before bounding off again.

“Are we in trouble with him?” Venom asked aloud, once they had put some space between themselves, and where heading towards the last spot Mandalay was at.

“It doesn’t feel like it.” Izuku answered, though uncertain himself if things were really that good.

“But is he….fine with us?” Venom wondered again.

“I don’t think so. We’ll have to wait and see.” Izuku replied, as they moved through the forest, smashing through a down tree in their path. “Let’s just focus, okay, Ven?”

Venom silently agreed, releasing a low grumble, like an alligator releasing a warning sound off within his territory.  
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Magne blocked every blow she could, while carefully dodging away from those she could not, making sure she didn’t take any major injury from Tiger, while launching a hook or uppercut when she could, as Spinner kept Mandalay on the defense and the run with his massive, and very, very over-compensating sword. He was young and all too-eager to live up to the ideals of Stain, but she didn’t mind. They all had their own reasons for joining, her included, and it all served the same purpose.

As she blocked and shielded herself from another blow from Tiger, she caught sight of a massive, night-black colored creature from the darkness and smashing into Spinner’s sword, made up of a bunch of other tiny swords, daggers and knives he had tied and wrapped together to make a massive bludgeoning weapon, smashing into it fist first, and either shattering or scattering the various assortments of blades and daggers he had gathered.

Mages and Spinner both watched in shock at the sight of the being simply splintering their most powerful weapon without so much as a shrug, landing in their midst, fangs and teeth bared. Such power and strength! Mages had heard of such a being when she was a part time crock and thug, among the others, but never thought she’d see the Black Death itself here in the flesh. And, to even greater surprise, the being’s mouth split back and away, to reveal a young kid’s face. She deflected a punch away from her face, eyes widening. 

“Mandalay! Kota is safe!” He reported triumphantly, as Spinner backed away in terror and aw at the figure before him. “Aizawa has a message! Every student, Class A and B, is able to fight!”

She was amazed he had managed to rescue Kota, given how much time had passed, but gave grateful, tearful nod, before relying his message to all of the students with her Quirk.

“Everyone, Mister Aizawa has given full permission! Defend yourselves with your Quirks!” 

“The villains are also after Kaachan! Make sure you send that out too!” He yelled, before bolting off into the forests.

Magne focused on the student, as the reptilian-like face wrapped back around his own, heading off to the forests.

‘There was a lot of noise coming from the mountains, and only three of our team have that level of power,” Magne thought, watching him wearily. ‘X was assigned to attack the teachers in the main encampment, the Nomu was on stand-by, which means this kid was probably brawling it out with Muscular.’

She broke off and began to pursue. ‘Which means this kid, on top of being on top of the kill list, can fight off our strongest member.’

It was too much to risk. And given what Shigaraki had told them about this “Venom Symbiote”, Magne just couldn’t resist. She began to run after the beast. If Muscular had fought it head-on, then he had hopefully softened it up for her to go after.

‘I could use something like that.’ She thought, before a knife flew in front of her. Magne stopped, glaring back at Spinner in irritation. “What the hell?”

“No, Big Sis Mages. We can’t kill that one!” Spinner declared in his melodramatic way.

“He’s on the kill list!” Magne yelled back in annoyance, wishing he could stow the Stain admiration for a second.

“The Hero Killer declared him worthy!” Spinner protested back.

Neither really had time to continue the argument, before both Tiger and Mandalay launched their own sucker punches into their respective targets, knocking them and giving them time to argue further.  
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As the message went out across the camp, Bakugou and Todoroki found themselves behind a wall of ice, the black-suited figure bending backwards, balanced on several blade-like teeth, others bending and twisting around in the air to try and stab and break through the ice walls. As Todoroki tried to maintain their defenses, Bakugou’s eye twitched slightly. 

“I...I have to en...endure!” Moonfish hissed and moaned to himself, more teeth extending out and twisting around again. “First the job, then the flesh!”

“Don’t charge in recklessly. Did you not just hear the warning?” Shoto remarked, sensing his growing temper.

“Yap, yap, yap inside our damned heads, all the damn time!” Bakugou snarled, a vein in his head throbbing with barely contained rage. “First, we can fight, now we can’t! What did that little twerp Deku go and do now?”

One of the bladed teeth stabbed through the ice in front of him. He pulled back his hand, heat gathering on his palm. “I think I’ll go wild, and do what I want!”

The blade suddenly twisted and backed off towards him, as he stumbled backwards, the blade trying to angle off into his body. Todoroki slammed his right foot down on the ground, another massive wall of ice erupting out in front of them.

“He’s smarter then he looks, and he’s making good use of the terrain and his Quirk.”Shoto remarked, breathing hard as the being climbed and twisted in the air to avoid the ice wall’s sharper edges.  
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Venom stomped through the forest and underbrush, his eyes narrowed as he studied the area, trying to follow the scent and signs of Bakugou and the other students, before stopping at the loud sound of a gunshot ringing out. He looked out to the direction the shot had sounded off from. He was rather surprised things had lead to guns being used. But he had no time to worry about that, with Izuku pushing him to try and find Bakugou as soon as he could.

“Why are we searching? He’s a big boy, he can take care of himself.” Venom growled to himself, looking around for anyone else. 

“We have to do this! I can’t just sit and not do anything when they’re after him!” Izuku protested, Venom grimacing to himself.

“Well, let’s just find something to bash someone’s head in.” Venom grumbled, wanting to change the subject and find some way to compromise. 

“Aren’t you about defending the innocents! You’ve said that before, right?” Izuku questioned, pushing at him.

“Bakugou isn’t innocent.” Venom remarked bluntly, thinking back to all the abuse Izuku had been thrown into, before his senses felt an incoming attack.

Suddenly a massive black-purple clawed hand smashed through the trees and anything in it’s way, lashing out at Venom, who easily jumped and flipped away, easily dodging the attack despite his own surprise.

He landed in the thickets, turning as someone moved to his left. Shoji slide to a stop, one of his extra limbs bleeding from an old wound. Venom waited a moment, not sure if another attack would come, before he turned to Shoji.

“Is that…?” Venom began to ask.

“Yep, I took a hit from one of the villains.” Shoji remarked, indicating his injured limb. “But it got his Quirk riled up and he lost control.”

Izuku shuddered, and Venom gave a nervous growl. All the training and time with Tokoyami had taught them one thing, very quickly. The darker it got, the harder it got for him to keep Dark Shadow under control, similar to how Venom got more and more wild when he wasn’t fed properly. The two ventured a little closer, seeing Dark Shadow massed and roiling like a storm, wrapped around Tokoyami’s body and legs tightly, half of his head covered in Dark Shadow’s mass, caught in the massive jaws of Dark Shadow itself, the temporal Quirk swirling and massing around, looking like it was reaching the size of a small truck.

“Stay away!” Tokoyami struggled to get out. “It’s going to kill you!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, next part of the Vanguard Squad's attack. I'm gonna have to think things out going forward a bit more, because Venom facing the other members is a lot different then going head to head with Muscular.


	34. Heart of Darkness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The worst case scenario happens.

Izuku could feel his blood run cold in his veins as he and Venom looked upon swirling, writhing mass of Dark Shadow, who had grown to a monstrous, impossible size. Even with Shoji at his side, he doubted there was any way to get out of this without taking even more injury and damage. And one of his closest friends, now a victim of his own Quirk, was almost too much to bear to watch.

“Listen, if we’re gonna get to the villain, we have to get through him,” Shoji warned, voice low as ever, looking back uncomfortably at Tokoyami, Dark Shadow’s red eyes focusing in on him, before looking around elsewhere.

Shoji and Venom stepped back, careful not to unsettle the underbrush and grass. Venom shrank down into his Deku Form, and turned to Shoji. “What happened?”

“Keep your voice down.” Shoji warned from one of his extra limbs. “We were walking through when I heard something in the trees. Next thing I know, a barrage of blades, fast as lightning came down, lost an arm to it.”

“An arm?” Venom asked, rather alarmed, as Izuku felt himself shudder within Venom’s body.

“Don’t worry, my duplicates are disposable. No real damage.” Shoji said, as they carefully moved through the forest, before Dark Shadow’s claw lashed out at them, both ducking and rolling away as he smashed the tree to splinters.

They both ducked behind a bush. “But Tokoyami couldn’t take it. I think he blamed himself. And after that...”

He indicated Dark Shadow, who was roaring at the top of it’s ‘lungs’, the two others watching him carefully. “Without Tokoyami, it merely reacts to movement and sound, lashing out at even leaves without thinking.”

“Lovely.” Venom remarked, looking back over at Dark Shadow’s form. “Do you have a plan?”

“Best we can do is get you and Ven to Bakugou, and let me distract Dark Shadow, lure him away from you.” Shoji replied, though didn’t seem to like that plan much either. “Best we can do, given everything.”

“Any ideas from you?” Venom asked, Shoji looking confused for a moment, before realizing he was speaking to Izuku. Venom’s face peeled away, like a flower unfurling, Izuku’s face appearing from it.

“I’ve got an idea. We can both save Tokoyami and get to Kaachan without sacrificing either.” Izuku stated, looking towards Dark Shadow. “We’ll need your Quirk for this, if you’re ready.”

“Well, give me the plan, and we’ll see.” Shoji replied.  
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As the plan was laid out, Todoroki and Bakugou were left to their own defense, Shoto having erected multiple ice walls, to the point his body was locking up and shivering from overuse, frost bite coating his arms, face and neck, his breath coming out in quick, chilled vapors from between his teeth. Bakugou snarled to himself like a hound tired of being held back, and wanting to be let loose.

“I’ve had it, I’m going all out!” Bakugou snapped, raising his hands to prepare a blast.

“Are you crazy? You could set off more fires!” Todoroki warned in alarm. “Do you want to get more people killed?”

“Just cover the trees in ice if it gets out of control.” Bakugou snapped back.

“You realize if you set off an attack and it doesn’t hit, you could obscure our vision and leave us open to worse attacks?” Shoto remarked, narrowing his eyes in annoyance, but before they could continue, something sounded off.

Bakugou and Shoto peaked bast the shattered ice and frost walls, something large and powerful smashing through the forests and trees behind them. The first to come into sight where Shoji and Izuku wearing Venom over his body, causing both to think it was those to running out of the trees, as Moonfish turned in confusion. Everyone, even Moonfish, ever so slightly, felt their jaws drop when Dark Shadow, larger and more powerful, almost looking like a tank of black energy.

“Bakugou! Todoroki! Give us some light you guys!” Shoji shouted in a panic, as Venom swung overhead on a tendril of black slime from his right hand.

“Flesh...Flesh from the target photo!” Moonfish yelled, his teeth retracting and redirecting, as he turned and began firing of toothblades towards Shoji and Venom.

One stabbed into Venom’s shoulder, who didn’t seem to notice, swinging in the way of the two blades heading towards Shoji, and throwing up his left arm in their way, catching the blades in his palm and arm, only giving a pain grunt. Flexing, he snapped the blades partially off off the rest of the teeth, Moonfish backing away slightly, as Venom slammed into the ground, before jumping and roaring, pulling back his right fist for a hook punch.

Moonfish fired off more teeth blades, slicing off Venom’s tapering tongue, as the Symbiote crashed fist first into the psychopath. He stood, snarling at the being, as his tongue regrew, before turning to see Dark Shadow almost on them all, Shoji barely tucking and rolling out of the way, not that it mattered. The out of control Quirk and turned it’s attention and rage on Todoroki and Bakugou.

“You two, produce your flames and quick!” Venom demanded, turning back in shock at Dark Shadow. “Tokoyami is on a rampage!”

“Not good...flesh...not good at all!”Moonfish babbled on, getting up with the help of his teeth, blades stabbing into the ground to prop up his body. “I’ll be the one to feast on their eyeballs! Hard on the outside, gooey on inside! Flesh and eyes!”

He turned, firing off several blades into Dark Shadow’s face. The Quirk turned, it’s red eyes on Moonfish, roaring in rage and annoyance. “Don’t test me!”

His shadowy fist grabbed the blade teeth and snapped them off with a flick of the wrist, before slamming a back into Moonfish’s body, sending him flying away like a doll Dark Shadow had grown tired of. “Disgusting vermin!”

Moonfish proceeded to smash through dozens of trees, his teeth shattered and broken in his wake, as Dark Shadow turned to Bakugou and Todoroki. “I’m not finished with my fun just yet!”

“Just watch and learn.” Bakugou remarked.

Dark Shadow stomped over to them, looming high in the night sky and roaring down at them, only for both to unleash a small burst of explosions, like fire crackers from his palm, as Todoroki released a small torrent of fire, melting the frost bite across his body and both causing Dark Shadow to instantly shrink down, now no larger then a child’s forearm, and retreated into his body.

“We’re a poor match up, you and me.” Bakugou quipped, explosions fizzling from his right palm.

Tokoyami gave him a weary glance, nodding to himself. His voice was low and hollow, almost like he could barely muster the energy to even speak to them. “I’m sorry...I...I’m sorry….I lost control.”

“It’s fine man, don’t beat yourself up.” Shoji replied nonchalantly. 

Venom retreated into Izuku’s body, not sensing any threats nearby. He took a deep breath, finally able to see everything for himself. He walked over to Tokoyami and put a hand on his shoulder.

“Listen, Tokoyami, I...I know what’s it’s like to be held hostage by your power.” Izuku said softly, breathing sharply through his teeth, “I...I’ve had issues with Venom in the past. You’re not alone.”

The Symbiote was silent, guilt radiating from it onto Izuku’s mind, acknowledging, in some small way, how it had violated their trust and bond together. Tokoyami looked up wearily, nodding to Izuku.

“It took me a while to get used to, and even then I screw up sometimes.” He remarked. “But you can always come back from it, no matter what mistake you make.”

“Thank you, Midoriya.” Tokoyami said for a moment, as they stood up, Izuku stepping back slightly. “I just thought I had more control over myself. I really have fallen in my duties.”

“Don’t beat yourself up! We’re all here to learn.” Shoji said with an encouraging tone, giving him a thumbs up. “Nothing you could’ve done to stop it.”

Tokoyami still looked forlorn, but nodded slightly in agreement. Izuku looked around, assessing the group, before noticing Shoto carrying a class B student, , on his back.

“Do you need help with him?” He asked. “Venom and I...”

“No, it’s fine. Let’s stay focused.” Shoto replied, looking among the group.

“A line up like this would make even All Might hesitate.” Shoji remarked.

“Wait the fuck on!” Bakugou yelled, confused and angry, though the latter wasn’t anything new to those in the class. “What the hell is going on?”

“Get in the middle.” Todoroki stated, glancing around, alert and waiting for something, anything to attack them even now.

“Don’t order me around!” Bakugou snapped back, as they continued on their way, Bakugou getting in the middle, Shoji, Izuku and Shoto getting in front of him, Tokoyami bringing up the rear.

Despite the line up and Shoji’s own words, Izuku couldn’t shake the feeling something was going to go wrong in this whole mess. Soon, he’d find out just how ready they were for the Villains to come.  
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Uraraka breathed hard, clutching her left arm in pain, the shirt sleeve cut open and dry blood against it and her skin. Tsu looked back at her worried, standing slightly in front of her to try and keep her safe from their attacker. The girl before them looked almost completely normal, dressed in a school uniform and sweater expected of high school student, the only difference being her device across her back and slender waist, and the fanged mask over her face and around her collar. She was inspecting her knife with a keen eye, like an expert surgeon.

“Hmmm. Shallow. Too Shallow.” She remarked, an annoyed tone in her voice.

“Who are you? Why are you coming out here swinging a knife at people?” Tsuyu demanded, voice rising in anger at the sight of her.

“I’m Toga!” She declared excitedly, before pointing her knife to each of them. “Uraraka, and Asui.”

“They know our names...” Uraraka remarked lowly, sounding slightly afraid.

“Sports Festival. People found out a lot about us. This doesn’t help us.” Tsu murmured, tongue sticking out slightly, at the ready.

“So little blood isn’t any fun. Usually with a good wound, I can suck all out.” She explained, reaching behind her into the device, as she detached part of it a loud, sharp click. “But with this device, I can suck out all I want with just a small wound.”

She grasped the handle carefully, the object connected to the rest by a long tube, and hit a button on the side, a needle snapping out with a light hiss of escaped air. Smiling beneath her mask, she charged, running towards with knife and syringe device ready. Uraraka and Tsu lurched back in shock and horror for a moment, before Tsu wrapped her tongue around Ochako, and swung back, throwing her towards the area of the camp.

“Head back to camp! We have permission to use our Quirks in self defense, but we can’t beat the villains up.” Tsu yelled. “Aizawa would want us to avoid any unneeded fights!”

“Right, we’ll both get there, okay Tsu?” Ochako said, looking down at her friend with worry.

As Tsu turned to deal with Toga, the mad Villain was already on swinging her knife to cut into her. The tip of the blade sliced into the tip of Asui’s tongue, as she flinched and side stepped the attacker. She felt pain well up her tongue but focused as best she could on the task at hand. 

Toga came to a stop, thinking for a moment, as Froppy stepped back, blood flicking from her mouth. “Tsuyu….Tsu. Little Tsu! How cute!”

“Stop that! Only my friends can call me that!” Tsu protested, leaping to one side of the forest and away from Himiko.

With the practiced skills of a hunter, she turned and threw the syringe device with such speed and force, it perfectly caught her hair, slamming into it and striking into the tree bark, stabbing deep within the tree.

“Then I guess we’ll be the best of friends!” Toga cheered happily, jumping up and down excitedly.

She closed the gap quickly, grinning from ear to ear, blushing excitedly, as she leaned in close to Tsu’s face. “Tsu, you’re bleeding! Isn’t it wonderful! I love the sight of blood! The smell!”

Tusyu didn’t even know how to react to such a strange and bizarre villain, but Ochako knew what to do. Or partially at any rate. Plan or no, simply running away or standing by wouldn’t do any good. She got to her feet and charged through the under brush, right towards the blade-yielding villain.

“Stay away from her!” Ochako yelled, charging in to get within range of Toga. 

The Villain turned and swung out, Uraraka nimbly stepping out of the way, a few hairs sliced off, as she grabbed Himiko by the wrist, controlling the weapon, then the back of her neck, pivoted on her right foot, and spun, Toga to surprised and shocked that someone had been able to fight back to muster a defense, before Ochako planted her face-first into the ground. 

As she pinned her down, Uraraka turned to see if Tsuyu was alright. “Are you okay? Are you injured? Can you pin her with your tongue?”

It was a lot at once, but Ochako was still high on adrenaline and the rush of the fight. Tsu gave an understanding nod, as best she could with the syringe device hanging her by her hair. “I’ll be alright. Just give me a sec.”

“You’re pretty cute too, Ochako.” Toga remarked, seemingly not as hurt from the landing as Uraraka had expected.

Uraraka looked down at her, slightly confused and unnerved by her words and actions. “There’s someone you like too, isn’t there? Someone you want to be like?”

She was struck silent by this, keeping her control on Toga’s wrist and neck to keep her from doing another attack, but the Blond seemed more concerned with keeping up her strange talk. “I can tell, you’re a maiden, like me!”

‘What is with this girl?’ She thought in a mix of disgust and horror.

“You want to be the person you love most, it’s only natural!” She declared, smiling wide. “So you start dressing like him, acting like him, trying to be like him. But soon, none of this is enough. You have to become him!”

“So what’s your type?” She asked with the same sort of tone close friends would use during a sleep over. “I like people just carved up and covered in blood. Guys, girls, anyone. It’s always fun, isn’t?”

She angled her hand and jabbed one of the syringes in her thigh, Uraraka flinching in pain. “A good romance is always the most fun!”

She shuddered in pain as the device began extracting her blood, Tsu crying out in terror, before the brush began rustle and break, Izuku coming from the forests and into the clearing, followed by Shoji and a number of others. Toga took advantage of the momentary distraction to knock Uraraka off herself and run for the trees, her wires and syringes retracted and clicked back into place on her device. 

“There’s no fun when more people get involved. Toddles.” She remarked, before she noticed Izuku, a look of surprise, then a a brief look of sudden ecstasy, before she ran off.

“Get her!” Uraraka shouted, as Izuku transformed in Venom, but she had already ran off into the forests.

“Wait! We don’t know what kind of Quirk she has!” Tsu cautioned.

“Probably nothing important, but we’re staying together.” Venom remarked confidently. “Are you alright, Uraraka?”

“Yeah, it’s just a nick.” She remarked, as Venom quickly collapsed back into Izuku’s body.

“Are you sure?” He asked in worry, as the others came to the clearing as well. “Who was that?”

“Yeah. It’s fine.” She remarked, before looking back at the forests. “A villain. Pretty nuts.”

“You should join up with us, we’re heading back to camp and guarding Kaachan.” Izuku suggested, as Shoji came up, an unconscious student wrapped around his back by his extra limbs and Shoto.

“Um, what do you mean?” Uraraka asked in confusion.

“Yeah, Bakugou’s not with you.” Tsuyu remarked with slight worry.

“What, he’s right...” Izuku turned in surprise, before his expression gave way to horror. “Where…?”

“Tokoyami’s gone too.” Shoto reported, his usually calm and cold voice starting to sound paniced.

The forest and clearing was completely clear, nothing out of the ordinary, and no sign they had tripped or fallen anywhere. They would’ve heard it. Izuku felt his blood run cold at the thought of two of his friends being captured or killed, and Venom was alert, his head appearing from his host’s shoulder to look around, before a sharp click sounded from one of the trees several yards away, like metal hitting bark.

“That would be me whose taken him!” A proud voice declared, as they turned to see a man dressed in a dapper top hat and high priced orange overcoat, a bejeweled cane in one gloved hand, and a set of light blue marbles in the other. The strangest part about him was his white mask, it’s black marking resembling a strange, smiling performer of some kind. “All with my magic! We’ll be putting him to work on a stage where he can truly shine.”

“Give him back!” Izuku shouted in rage, Venom shifting and morphing over his body into his usual suited look, fangs barred and tongue flicking out from between them.

“Give him back? Such an odd thing to say,” The man remarked. “He’s his own man, a person who should be free to make his own decisions, not have you make them for him.”

“You will not take either of them! Return them before we introduce your face to your colon!” Venom threatened.

“My, my, not what I expected from heroes in training, to give such foul-mouthed threats.” The Gentleman remarked with a chuckle. 

Shoto slammed his foot his down, a pillar of ice rising and shooting out towards the tree he was, quickly and utterly pulverizing it, as the man gracefully jumped and dodged away.

“Of course, we’re a bit fanatical, but why wouldn’t we?” He remarked, as though nothing had happened at all. “You kids have your values chosen for you.”

“He took them both without making a noise.” Shoto remarked in anger. “He’s just toying with us.”

“Indeed, I’m a showman at heart, it’s my greatest weakness.” The Dapper Man declared, keeping a tight hold on the two marbles. “Moonfish, ole Blade Tooth, a death row inmate and cannibal, couldn’t even scratch him. Taking him was only smart.”

“Everyone stand back.” Todoroki ordered calmly, narrowing his eyes as a mountainous wave of ice exploded from his foot, every getting behind him as it rushed out like a tidal wave at him.

The Villain merely dodged and rolled through the air like an expert gymnast. “Ah, I’m afraid this is over. Running away and deception are my only two talents here. Dealing with heroes in training isn’t something I can do.”

He clicked a button in his ear, static sounded at first, before he spoke. “Vanguard Action Squad, this is Mister Compress. We have the target.”

Throughout the forests, all the communicators sounded, Spinner and Magne trapped and bounded by Tiger and Mandalay, X waiting deep within the forests, sitting within one of the trees, while Moonfish, Muscular and Mustard were knocked out and bound.

“Short as it was, our mission is a success! Be at the Evacuation point within five minutes of transmission!”

“They’re done here?” Shoto asked in shock and horror, not wanting to imagine what they had planned.

“No! They cannot do this!” Venom growled, green slime dripping from his fangs.  
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“Man, our boy Compress sure got that job done quick! Sure took his sweat ass time though!” Twice declared excitedly, Dabi marching along beside him with his usual stoic look, as the forests burned behind them.

“Quite done Twice. We got what we needed.” Dabi remarked coldly. “Now we wait.”

He looked around for a moment, narrowing his icy blue eyes in annoyance for a second. “Hmm. This area was supposed to be blocked off by the wall of flames and poisonous gas...but the gas is all gone.”

“Something happen to Mustard you think?” Twice suggested.

“Most likely. Things never go as planned, do they?” He replied, as they continued on. It was surprising. The kid was young, but he seemed smart enough to strategise, even bringing a gun with. But, he was done for the count it would seem.

“You said it!”

The two stopped for a moment to wait, before Dabi thought he saw something move in the bushes to their right. He narrowed his eyes, not saying a word as he began to approach, sparks and smoke beginning to build off his fingertips. It could’ve been a bird, or some kind of panicking animal, or a student. He couldn’t take any chances. Better to clear the area and make sure there were no stragglers.

“Yo Dabi!” Twice called. The villain’s eye twitched for a moment, annoyed Twice was distracting him, before he heard the rest. “Totally not important, but shouldn’t we be calling back that Nomu?”

Dabi turned, suddenly remembering the creature. Twice continued. “Shigaraki did say it would respond to your voice. That did seem vital!”

“Oh right. You were the one to remind me to use it in the first place.” Dabi remarked, stepping away from the bush. He had other things to worry about. 

“Damn right, bow before me!” Twice declared.

“Man, my own personal attack monster.” Dabi remarked, clicking the communications device on, remembering how jealous X was that he had been passed up for Nomu control for Dabi, despite being the first new member. 

Dabi personally believed it was because he kept slugging down all the liquor Shigaraki and Kurogiri had, and it was small way of punishing him. Either that, he because he tended to yammer on about anything that caught his attention.

“I wonder if he’s killed anyone yet?”  
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Awaze ran through the forests, breathing hard, focused dead ahead as he carried Yaoyurozu, fusing part of her into his body as he felt a cold sweat run down his face and neck. The trees and anything else around them were pulverized and destroyed in the wake of the light blue Nomu and it’s chainsaw limbs, one ending in a drill, another in a hammer. It was built like a tank, probably as tall and as muscled as Venom, but it’s face covered in a helmet like structure, with a brace over it’s mouth.

Even without eyes, Awaze could just tell the glare it was giving off was like that of a wolf that had caught the scent of a weakened prey animal, charging after them and barely slowed down. It had already clobbered Momo over the head, as the blood from her head could attest to, while in it’s right hand, it clutched the shattered, ruined headset from Ragdoll’s hero costume.

“’ittle Kitty!” it hissed, growling and roaring at them.

It drew closer and closer, Awaze barely able to keep moving now, so tired and drained was he, that even the adrenaline and rush of horror and terror form the Nomu couldn’t keep him going any further. He panicked to think of a way of getting Momo out of the line of fire and keep her safe. All too late, he thought, as the chainsaw from one of it’s limbs neared, coming inches from his face, ready to splatter him and turn him to gore.

He flinched, looking away, praying it would be over quick and painless, before the noise stopped. He looked up with a shock, as the Nomu’s limbs collapsed and shifted into it’s body once more, and turned and began to walk away.

“What the hell?” He whispered in horror, afraid to even move, for fear it would come back at him again.

“Awaze, don’t let him get away.” Momo stated, holding up a small device. “Fuse this into him.”

He took it carefully, gently holding it in his hand. “A button?”

“No, something else.” Yaoyuruzu stated, still sounding groggy and slightly delirious. “Put it on him, quick!”

Swallowing his fear and terror, Awaze ran up behind the creature, swallowing again and holding back a gag. The thing smelt like a corpse left out in the sun for too long. But, regardless, he slapped it on the back, fusing the device into it’s flesh, and running away as it stopped. He breathed hard, backing away and watching it in horror, terrified it would turn back on them and continue where it had left off.

The Nomu seemed confused for a moment, as though trying to register something, before shaking it off and continuing on. “’Ittle Kitty!’  
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Venom somewhat regretted his decision to hold back and not go full speed against this ‘Mister Compress’. The other students were quick and had more agility then most teenage humans, but there was only so much Non-Symbiotes could do to keep up. All Might or Endeavor, maybe even Godzillo could’ve kept up, but teens? No way.

Still, he wasn’t about to risk anymore of Midoriya’s friends in the forests here, in case that Bone Spur-covered man was lerking around, or someone similar to Muscular or Moonfish. He was staying right by them, no matter what.

“Jeez, how fast can this dude move?” Shoji remarked in annoyance.

“This will not do.” Venom remarked, as he and Izuku began to plan something out. The others looked at the symbiote as he began to talk to himself. “Yes, that could work. We could try that. As long as I get to tear his head off.”

“I hope you’re talking to Izuku.” Shoto remarked.

“Yes, yes. He has a plan. Or part of one at least.” Venom replied.

After laying out the ground as quickly as he could, the group prepared. Uraraka touched each one of them, Todoroki, Venom and Shoji, as Asui wrapped her tongue around the three. Venom had shrunk into his more Deku-like form, to make things easier for both girls, as he implanted a piece of himself in her ear.

“This will allow me to tell you the exact, perfect moment to release.” Venom explained, as Tsu prepared herself. “Or if you can, trust your own wisdom if we get distracted.”

“Right.” She stated, before looking to Asui. “You ready Tsu?”

She gave a small nod, before leaning back, and throwing the three with all her might into the air. Shoji spread his duplicate limbs and their webbing, catching the air as he hung onto Todoroki’s arm tightly to keep him from falling, while Venom created his own, small arm-like tentacles jutting out from his back and connected to his arms by thick web-like material.

Izuku had no time to be amazed with his Symbiote’s latest development, so focused was he on Mr. Compress, who was traveling through the air, turning just in time to see them barreling towards him like three human canon balls, and closing fast. He only had time to yell out in horror and shock, before all three collided, gravity returning right as they hit.

“Outstanding Uraraka. We’ll retrieve our piece from you when we finish rearranging this guy’s skeletal structure.” Venom congratulated with a wide, fang-filled smile.  
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The Rendezvous point was soon occupied by two more people, X coming from the west, and Toga from the south.

“Wow, I must be early. Just you three?” She remarked cheerfully.

“Hey, psycho, did you get the blood? How many and from which ones?” Dabi asked coldly, completely focused on their objectives.

“One person!” 

“One, hey what gives? Weren’t you supposed to get three?” Twice demanded.

“That’s just how it went down, I thought those brats were gonna kill me.” She replied.

X rolled his eyes slightly, sighing. Dabi pointed at him, as Twice and Toga continued babbling to themselves. “You, Edgelord, you kill either Eraser or Vlad?”

“Couldn’t.” X replied, eyes darting around the forest slightly. “I was retreating to wait for your clone, when Venom showed up. That Midoriya kid, and Aizawa was already after me.”

“You didn’t try and fight him?” Dabi demanded in annoyance, his voice still low and even.

“And do what? Eraser would just take away any power I have and make a punching bag for Black Death.” X remarked bitterly, before turning to Toga, raising an eyebrow. “Wait, did you say a boy you liked? What the hell, where did you meet a new crush?”

“Stow, all three of you, you’re too loud.” Dabi ordered in annoyance, before something caught his eye. He looked up in surprise and annoyance, as Compress came crashing down to the ground, three students ontop of him.

“Return Bakugou and Tokoyami back to us!” Venom growled, his rage barely contained, quickly morphing into his full size.

“Hey, I know these brats!” Twice said, before turning to the others. “Who are they?”

“Outta the way Compress.” Dabi remarked, pulling back his right arm, blue flames building and burning off them, before throwing them outwards.

“Got it.” He struggled, shrinking down instantly, as the flames hit all three.

Venom was hit down on, his chest and part of his face instantly getting burned to a crisp, as he was thrown back, roaring in pain and agony. Shoji doubled back, yelling out in pain as two of his duplicate limbs burned away. Even Shoto, his left side more acclimated to the heat of open flame, was shocked at just how intense the heat of the fire was.

Venom tried to get to his feet, but his left arm, and sections of the chest and abdomen fell off of him like his, half of Izuku’s face showing underneath and cringing in pain from the burns on his face, neck and body.

“Hey, Venom, you’re okay right?” Izuku asked, trying to get to his feet. 

“We are fine. I can heal from this. But that hellfire was worse then any I’ve felt before.” Venom replied, sounding tired and drained, before hesitating. “Something has been feeling off.”

Before Izuku could question the Symbiote further, things were already escalating. Twice was on Shoto in an instant, pulling out a roll of measuring tape, the lining of it shining and metallic. “There was a lot of names on the Shigaraki Kill List, and you and Fangs over there weren’t on it!” 

Shoto didn’t wait to question what he meant by that, turning and sending a wave of Ice at the black-suited man, sending him back, as he acrobatically flipped and jumped away. Shoji, meanwhile went to see if Izuku was alright, before the masked man appeared before him, claws sprouting from his splitting, bleeding fingers.

“Hey, nice mask. Want to trade?” X replied, smiling beneath for a moment, as Shoji threw a hook punch aimed at his face.

X grabbed the fist, and swung swung his own punch with his other hand, Shoji grabbing it and pushing back. “Guess we’re not in a friendly mood.”

Meanwhile, Toga had jumped at Izuku, speeding past X and Shoji, to jump on him, even as he got up. Even with Venom Injured, he was still a good two or three times her size, but she seemed all too excited and overjoyed to see him. Both host and Symbiote’s eyes widened in shock as she mounted him, unsheathing a knife.

“Hi Izuku, I’m Toga! I just want to see how you’ll look, bleeding out!” She declared in exhilaration. 

“Tch. Too much like my firstborn for my tastes.” Venom remarked, pulling back a claw, and sending a tentacle out, wrapping it around her wrist to keep the knife away as they healed.

He wouldn’t have to worry long, Shoji tossing X aside and throwing him into Toga, the two landed in the bushes not far from either. Twice sliced through pillars of ice with the edges of his measuring tape, as Mr. Compress rose from the ground, dirt falling off him as he brushed it all aside with a huff.

“Who would’ve thought they would take to the skies.” Compress remarked. “I’m rather annoyed with that flight of fancy.”

“You got the mark?” Dabi asked.

“Of course.” Compress remarked, reaching into his right pocket, before stopping in surprise.

“Time to move guys.” Shoji declared, producing two of the marbles himself. “I didn’t know what your Quirk was, but the way you showed them off, they were obviously important somehow.”

“Excellent work.” Venom remarked, still reforming over the burn scars Deku now sported, but now on his feet.

“Oh ho! How impressive. No finer pickpocket then someone with six arms.” Compress stated with a hint of pride and respect.

“Damn it Compress.” Dabi grumbled, as he stepped forward to finish the fight, only for the Performer to hold out a hand.

“Now, now.” Mr. Compress declared jovially, as the black and purple mass of Kurogiri appeared before them, looming behind the two.

Other warp gates opened before the other three members, Twice jumping in, as X and Toga stepped into their own, Toga waving to Izuku as she left, as Kurogiri opened another large portal in front of the three heroes in training. “Bye bye Izuku, see you later!”

The Nomu appeared, marching towards it’s master, ignoring everyone else in the way, as Kurogiri spoke. “I retrieved Magne and Spinner from capture, but we have no time. Come along Dabi.”

“Hold on, they still have the mark.” Dabi reported.

“Not so fast.” Compress declared. “They were so proud of rooting through my pockets, but the first roll of magic, is if I’m showing something shining, it’s to distract you.”

He removed his mask, opening his mouth and sticking out his tongue to reveal two more in his mouth. He snapped his fingers, as the two marbles vanished form sight, turning into large junks of ice. “The ice attack was the perfect way to plan my decoys.”

Venom and Izuku recoiled in shock, as the other two looked on in horror. “You’ve been a wonderful audience for my tricks. I bid thee farewell!”

Suddenly, a beam of sparkling blue energy shot out from the bushes to their left, Dabi recoiling in surprise, as the laser sliced and burned through Compress’ mask and part of his hat, causing him to spit out the two. Dabi briefly glared at Aoyama, cursing himself for not burning out the forest like he originally wanted to.

Venom snapped forward, using what Biomass he had left to fire a tentacle out and snatch one of the marbles away, while Todoroki jumped to get the other. His fingers came within inches of it. He could almost feel it, biting his lip to hold back the excitement and worry, hoping he could end this whole thing and put at least a small dent in their plans.

As he reached ever closer, knowing he would get it, another hand snatched the marble out of the air, clutching it tight. The one covered in horrific burn scars, Dabi looked down at him, smirking as Shoto dropped like a stone to the ground, looking on in shock.

“Well ain’t that a shame!” He said with fake pity. “Poor little Shoto Todoroki.”

He turned to Compress, holding the tiny sphere tightly. “It’s him. Release him.”

“This is making a mess of my final act.” Compress remarked in irritation, before snapping his fingers, the two marbles popping away, as Tokoyami appeared. 

Venom surged forward, retracting the tentacle back into himself, as Bakugou appeared from the other. Dabi grabbed him by the neck holding him tight as he chuckled. “Heh, this is it, checkmate!”

“Deku….don’t follow!” Bakugou managed, before being pulled in.

With that, they vanished into the darkened portal, closing right behind them. For a moment it was almost silent, not even the sounds of the burning forest around them reaching them. Then, with a grimace of pain and rage, Izuku yelled to the skies, screaming in rage and as Venom’s own roar joined his own, lifting his left fist, Venom’s fist, and smashing it into the ground, leaving a shattered crater in his anger.  
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Kurogiri watched Shigaraki closely as he studied another picture of Izuku Midoriya from the Sports Festival. The way he kept destroying and getting new copies online of his pictures, it made Kurogiri wonder if the younger villain was letting his obsessions get the better of him, but said nothing.

“I’m heading off to retrieve your comrades,” Kurogiri reported. “I’ll be gone for an hour or so. Are you fine?”

“Of course. Just go.” Shigaraki stated, far too calmly for what Kurogiri was used to.

Never the less, the villain formed a warp gate and disappeared into himself, vanishing from sight. He waited a moment, before silver tendrils sprouted from his shoulder, the light tugging almost feeling like someone was yanking at him, before they formed and morphed into a vaguely reptilian, monstrous face, not unlike Venom’s own. Of course, his silver color was a contrast to the black, but he had black markings around his white eyes, and flecks of red within his mass, like drops of blood in the twisting, whirling mass of Symbiote.

“We can’t find the others, but we at least have Venom’s location.” Shigaraki remarked. “Sorry about your buds.”

“Whether they’re alive or dead is irrelevant,” Riot replied coldly. “There are more of us. Millions more. They will follow where ever I lead.”

“Cool, cool, more gooey guys with teeth and nasty names.” Shigaraki muttered absentmindedly, as he disintegrated the picture and crushed what was left in his fist. “But what exactly does that all mean?”

Riot thought for a moment, before nodding to himself. “I...We, leave this world, I return to an outpost, contact the Emperor of the Klyntar, my kind, and give the signal to invade. From there, your world is colonized, and your kind bred to make more effective hosts, used to conquer other worlds.”

“And Venom?” Shigaraki asked, seemingly not concerned over his world’s fate.

“I am the Leader of this Unit, including him. Deaths are acceptable. It proves the strength of future hosts and weeds out weaker Klyntar,” Riot explained. “But his going rogue will call into question my leadership and strength, and could lead to the Emperor marking me for Death. We must retrieve him!”

“So we’ll get him or kill him.” Shigaraki said with a twisted smile. “Whatever happens, as long as I can turn Hero Society into dust when we’re done.”

“Of course, that was the agreement,” Riot replied. “Between the Emperor and All for One.”

As All for One sat within his chair, smiling as it all came together for his student and pupil, a galaxy away, on a world over-run so long ago, it might as well have been a mass of Symbiotes in the shape of a planet, sat an ancient figure, completely black except for the red markings on it’s chest, and the small, inhuman white eyes that glared out from it’s skull-like visage. A long red cape, looking as organic the figure who wore it, draped from it’s shoulders, ending in claws at random point. Fang-like growths jutted from it’s arms and legs, and a human-like eye opened on it’s chest.

“Something...changes….in the winds….” The being groaned in a deep, booming voice, like a thunder storm given a vocalization, as it leaned forward from it’s thrown, a twisted macabre growth that looked more like flesh and skin morphed into the appearance of a seat.

All around him, darkened shapes of varying colors morphed and twisted around him, fanged maws twisting into smiles and mocking grins of excitement. The Emperor, was ready for whatever came next, and so was his entire court and Imperium.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy, so much to talk about. The fighting is done, but I'm not through with the camp just yet. I got one more chapter there for the cool down, and for even more twists and turns.
> 
> So, anywho, Shigaraki finally got Riot. I did some more world building round why Riot wanted Venom back for so long, because, I like the movie, but it seemed odd that Riot would fixate on one "Loser" from their world, when he could just focus on bringing back the Symbiotes ("We must retrieve him"). So, added stakes for the Villains now I guess. Writing these two going forward will be a treat.
> 
> The Emperor of the Symbiotes is a slightly new character, based on the Symbiote Supreme from Marvel: Contest of Champions, but not really linked to Doctor Strange or magic. He is, however, the oldest individual Symbiote, one of the first created, and horrifically OP.
> 
> Otherwise, expect another Symbiote to pop in next chapter.


	35. The Nativity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More things are revealed after the attack by the Vanguard Action Squad.

15 minutes after the villains had escaped, rescue crews arrived, fire fighters putting out the worst of it, as Paramedics tended to everyone they could, police going into the forests and such to get the injured and wounded out of there and to tend to their wounds. It had taken all of Izuku’s self control to keep from smashing anything else alongside Venom, and to go see a paramedic. 

As the guy checked up on all his wounds, police escorted the three captured villains from the Vanguard Action Squad into armored vehicles. Moonfish was already in one transport when Izuku got there, while the second was a kid, probably in middle school judging by his age and Gakuran, but with a nasty welt all over the right side of his face, while Muscular, bound in heavy restraining irons, was lead by 10 officers into a transport chute, a small capsule designed to carry the worst criminals.

He cursed and struggled all the way there, declaring he’d murder them all, and nothing could keep him locked up, when he caught sight of Izuku. His struggles stopped, and he lingered for a moment, trying to step towards him as a smile spread across his face, in spite of the bleeding scars.

“You and me kid! You and me, we’re gonna square up again one day!” He declared, as they lead him in. “Be ready!”

Izuku gave him a weary look, as he chomped down on the chocolate bar, the fifth one, as his burn scars slowly healed. The medic looking after him was truly amazed, still tending to some cuts on a Class B student.

“Wow, you took out that Muscular guy, and are healing from burns that would take months for anyone else.” The Paramedic whistled in surprise, turning back to the other student. “You got one hell of a Quirk. Be thankful for that.”

“Always am.” Izuku said absent-mindedly, not really believing things were all that amazing. Not after what had happened. 

Venom spoke after a moment, sounding relieved. “We are in one piece at least, but Bakugou….”

“I can’t believe I failed Kaachan.” Izuku muttered, shaking his head in disbelief.

“We could only do so much, and the burns weakened us,” Venom explained, sounding like he wanted to say something else, before moving on. “Much more was at stake then your friend.”

“This again.” Izuku muttered in anger. “You claim to want to protect ‘Innocents’, but you seem to hate Kaachan.”

“He is not innocent for one, and two, I do not hate him,” Venom remarked bluntly. “But after everything he did, do you think I should like him? He bullied you, relentlessly, put you through hell. I remember what you remember. Why do you still admire him?”

“You’re in my head, you should know.” Izuku replied bitterly.

“You keep me out of certain things.” Venom grumbled, sounding hurt and pained. “We have no secrets.”

‘Fine, first thing’s first, why are you here?” Izuku thought, suddenly realizing that talking outloud would make him look crazy. ‘Why did you come here, and why are you afraid of Riot?’

Venom hesitated for a moment, seemingly terrified, before sighing to himself. “You know we are warriors. Fighters. Conquerors. It was what Knull made us to be. Even after we supposedly freed ourselves, many still clung to the old ways. Well, I am part of that Old Ways group. The Imperium sent Riot, Scream, Mayhem and myself to take this world, or to lead further campaigns into it.”

‘Did you plan to use me against earth, against All Might?’ Izuku asked coldly.

“No! Never! We bounded to you to survive, but you were so much like us! Alone, treated like a runt through no fault of your own!” Venom stated desperately, sounding disheartened. “I...I am kind of a loser, like you. Riot controlled through fear, and I was too terrified to stand up to him for the longest time.”

“That is why I decided to stay, to join you and help you!” Venom declared. “I let myself become another foot soldier, but you never let anyone control you, your dreams were your own. If you could stand on your own, so could I.”

Tears began to wheel up in his eyes, as Izuku shook his head. “So much for my dream. I couldn’t even save Kaachan.”

“None of that. We failed here, but we can get him back, and we will!” Venom said, determined as ever, desperate to reassure his host. “And if we must face Riot, then I’ll do it. We will do it!”

‘Because We are Venom.’ Izuku thought, giving a small, sad smile, wiping away the tears.

“Yes! Together, we can stop whatever Riot and Shigaraki have planned!” Venom stated, desperate to lift Izuku’s spirits.

Izuku nodded, before looking off towards the main camp, seeing Kota venture towards him, seemingly still nervous and upset about something. “You said during the fight with Compress and the others, that you felt strange, what was that?”

Venom seemed to freeze up for a moment, terrified, before shaking it off. “It was nothing. Just some stress caused by injuries.”

Izuku wanted to lecture him about keeping secrets, but ignored all of that to approach Kota. “Hey, are you alright? What are you doing out here?”

“I...I guess I wanted to see how you were doing.” Kota replied with a shrug, nervously folding his arms behind him.

“I’m fine, and so is Ven.” Izuku said, gesturing to his right, as Venom sprouted out, before greeting Kota himself. “Hello little one.”

“Yeah, uh, hi.” He replied back, as Izuku knelled down in front of him.

“You want to tell me what this all about?” He asked, glancing at Kota curiously. 

The younger boy seemed to hesitate, not sure what to say. He opened his mouth, but the words wouldn’t come out. Finally, he found the words he wanted. “Ummm, you said that wasn’t a Quirk, what does that mean?”

Venom looked around, making sure no one was around, before speaking, his tone hushed and silent. “Yes, we are not a Quirk. I am an alien being from another world. Izuku is my host, but we look like Heroes with a Quirk, so we just tell a little lie.”

“Are you like, alone, or is this like an invasion movie?” Kota asked, seeming dumbfounded by the idea he was speaking to an alien.

“Ah, that. No, not anymore.” Venom remarked. “My family is near non-existent, and all I need is Izuku.”

“So, that word from earlier…?” Kota struggled for a moment to think of it.

“Ky’ilar?” Venom guessed. “It means ‘Spawnling’, it’s the closest affectionate term for children in my language.”

Kota looked confused and uncertain for a moment, as Venom continued with his explanation.

“You reminded me of a grandchild of mine.” Venom remarked, before taking a deep breath of sorts. “But listen carefully Kota, no one can know, alright? This is our secret. To the rest, I am a Quirk.”

“Yeah, you saved me, I’m not gonna squeal.” Kota remarked with his usual stubborn pride returning.

“And as far as saving you went, don’t worry about it,” Izuku said, sensing, on some level, the real reason he was here. “You needed saving, and that was that.”

“Yeah, I know, I figured.” Kota said, trying to sound nonchalant, as Izuku fought back a smile. “I wasn’t here about that. I wanted to ask about the cool alien.”

“Sure thing Kota. He is really cool.” Izuku replied, hiding a smile, as he scratched the bottom of Venom’s chin. “Stay safe.”

He nodded, trudging off towards Mandalay, as Aizawa, moved among the students, checking each one. He looked more haggard and tired then usual, but he didn’t stop. He couldn’t. All of his students, and those of Class B, needed him. He stopped in front of Izuku, giving a tired sigh, not sure what to even begin to say.

“There’s a lot to do Midoriya, and I need to make sure everyone’s okay.” Aizawa remarked tiredly, rubbing one of his eyes, for once, looking more deflated and defeated then his usual gruff exterior would allow. “So many of your classmates have critical injuries, and I have to make sure they get the attention they need. I be meeting with you and some other teachers later.”

“Yes sir.” Izuku replied, sounding a little spooked by the whole thing, but somewhat relieved he didn’t have to keep this a secret now.

“Stick around the camp, and don’t wonder off.” Aizawa ordered, as he ran to the EMTs loading Yaoyoruzu onto of the vehicles.  
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The base on Ogasawara was a mess of chaos and work. Constant, constant work. Kinzokumure stood overlooking it, high on the balcony, as the other Agents within the taskforce hurried to give and carry out their various orders. The League had made their move and things were escalating, and with two Symbiotes involved, along with a ton of collateral, this situation was a delicate and dangerous one.

Kinzokumure did completely feel at ease. The Boss could detect it. “You took this job to do what needs to be done. I selected you for it.”

“I know sir.” Kinzokumure replied emptily.

“You’ve been willing to kidnap Mina Ashido for interrogation, and any other students,” The Boss reminded him with annoyance. “Now you expect me to believe you have some higher morals.”

“So carnage and destruction could’ve been avoided, sir.” Kinzokumure responded quietly. “Sir, with respect, I just see this way as inefficient.”

“Understandable.” The Boss replied through the distorted voice. “You seek an ordered way of things, a clean approach. But this job is not designed for cleanliness. You do what you must, and maintain the order.”

“Understood sir.” Kinzokumure replied. “Should we retrieve Ashido still?”

“This is going to be difficult.” The Boss stated. “I will retrieve her. Myself.”

“Sir?” Kinzokumure managed in shock. The Boss taking field missions was unheard of any agency, doubly so in this one.

“Do not approach. Have the surveillance team not record anything, they are to remain in their post.” The Boss ordered, sounding desperate and almost pushed over the edge. “Nakajima thinks he can sneak around us, we will remind him who owns his island and his hide.”

“Yes, sir.” he stated numbly, as the Boss hung up.

After everything, it felt off to put kids through this, but he wasn’t going to question things. Nakajima made the decision to include his family in this mayhem, to get more people, children involved. The consequences were his to bear, not Kinzokumure’s. 

‘We’ll be done with this things soon.’ He thought darkly, before noticing Doctor Cathal looking closely in the tank of a Symbiote, a purple and black one, fascinated with it like a child.

He had started wondering about the thin, skeletal man himself, wondering if he was all there. He would, when he was alone, talk and mutter to himself, work hours and hours, day after day, and not seemingly lose any energy or show any signs of fatigue, despite his age.

‘Maybe Okiatsumaru was right. This guy is just odd.’ He thought.

He had explained that his Quirk let him do this, which is why he would disappear for extended periods of time, to recharge it before it ran out of energy and hurt him.

He hadn’t expected normal from an agency dealing with extraterrestrials, but this was getting out of hand.  
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“So he actually did it.” Kitab remarked, sounding amazed, but at the same time not surprised by the audacity.

Kitab, the supernaturally tall Charles Whateley, Matron Kibotsume and two others, all dressed in the cloaks of the Church, gathered around an ancient wooden table, pitting and scaring all along it’s surface, the center and other parts colored red, as though from blood dried years ago. The Symbiote Dreadface stood at the door, baring entrance by the lower members.

The taller Prophet Whateley nodded, arms folded into his cloak. “Indeed, the scouts were correct. Though Shigaraki left many heavy hitters behind.”

“As long as they succeeded, that is all that matters.” Al’Hazred replied assuredly. “The plan moves forward. The visions will be correct.”

Kibotsume, her expression as always cold, spoke next. “So next, are the two titans’ defeats?”

“All for One will fall, and All Might as well.” Al’Hazred declared, a smile spreading across his cracked, twisted lips, as he stroked his beard in thought. “But this is the most delicate phase. As such, we must go silent, and make sure nothing traces to us.”

“Do you want the two scouts dead?” Kibotsume asked.

Hazred seemed shocked for a moment, before slowly shaking his head. “No, we should avoid killing as much as possible, especially now. Where would we hide the bodies even? No, have any non-essential scouts return to the monasteries and temples of Knull to wait the coming battle.”

Zzzxx was quiet for most of the meeting, seemingly contemplating something, his host happy to leave the Symbiote to his thinking, before his hissing, crackling voice sounded within his mind. “Kitab, something has occurred.”

The Supreme Prophet could tell this was important. His Symbiote would not react unless it was needed. Narrowing his eyes, he gave a knowing nod, before returning to the conversation. They could discuss that later.

“This moment is the most dangerous, but if things proceed as the visions have foretold, our victory is certain!” Kitab declared with a triumphant smile. “Soon, all shall come to pass, and Knull will walk among his children and faithful once more!”  
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The day after, most of the teachers had been gathered, sitting within the round table, as the Classes healed, recuperated and received any last minute check-ups. Aizawa and Vlad were the only ones not present, giving their statements and interviews with Tsukauchi while the others prepared for the next step they could take.

Outside, the media gathered in a horde, demanding answers and a statement from the teachers and heads of the Hero society at UA, and the teachers, for their part, didn’t have any yet.

“This whole ‘villain revival’, we’ve taken it too lightly.” Nezu stated, his usual chipper attitude faltering for a moment. “This has escalated into a war to end all of Hero society.”

“Even if we could’ve predicted this, could we have stopped these attacks?” Midnight said, glasses tucked into her hair. “Ever since All Might appeared, most criminals have slithered into the shadows. The only thing we’ve had is the Best of the Worst coming at us.”

“We’ve gotten way too complacent. In this peaceful era, we wouldn’t need preparations, and we just weren’t ready.” Mic remarked, making the same gestures he would as a DJ in the air.

All Might, in his more gaunt form, sat in silence for a moment, hands pressed together against his forehead. “I just can’t believe I wasn’t there! My students were fighting to the death while I was taking a bath!”

“I reckon this whole mess can’t be brushed aside as easy, those vermints went kidnapped a student.” Snipe mentioned, drumming his fingers on the table. “We’re gonna have to get serious and wrastle these criminals up, because they’re taking not just a student, but public trust in us.”

“The Media is going hog-wild here over what’s gone down too.” Nezu declared, showing a newspaper and online publication story about the kidnapping. “Bakugou’s wild, savage image probably was what lead to them targeting him. If they convince him, this school is finished.”

“And so would Bakugou’s life going forward.” Midnight interjected, narrowing her eyes slightly. PR could wait when a young student’s entire career and life was on the line.

“That reminds me,” Mic stated, looking around suspiciously. “We got a mole Among us!”

Everyone looked to him in slight surprise, but not greatly shocked. It was the only logical conclusion. He began to list off his evidence, caught up in the moment. “Think about it, only a select number of heroes from here and the Pusscats knew that location, while any student could’ve used the GPS feature on their phone to track us.”

“Knock it off Mic.” Midnight rebutted in annoyance. There was no time to start pointing fingers at everyone in the building.

“Like hell I will! We need to clear this up now!” Mic shouted desperately.

“We were gettin’ reports of two Raptor-lookin’ fellas in the area before and after the attack,” Snipe pointed out, stopping his fingers for the moment. “We might look into that.”

“That Dinosaur Quirk business?” Mic asked, squinting at Snipe. “That sort of thing is…really rare.”

“Well, we should look into that before we start pointing fingers,” Snipe stated firmly with a nod. “When we start jumping at each other, we’ll be doing the villains’ jobs for em!”

“We really can’t prove guilt at this point, but I trust each and everyone of you,” Nezu declared, looking around the whole room assuredly. “That actually leads nicely into the newest idea I had….”

“A Call is Here! A Call is Here!” A phone chimed on, cutting him off, leaving Nezu in stunned silence, as Toshinori gave an apologetic look around the room.

“Sorry, I have to take this.” He remarked numbly as he hurried out the room.

“You were supposed to turn that off!” Mic yelled at his back.

“Forgetting that, what a lame ringtone.” Midnight mumbled, more to herself then the group.

He went out into the hall, balling a fist in agitation over his seeming inaction, before picking up the phone from his pocket and answering. “Sorry Tsukauchi, what is it?”

“Sorry to drop in at random All Might, but we might have a break in case.”

He listened closely, eyes narrowed, as Tsukauchi went over their entire process, detailing finding witness statements on a “Man with patchwork skin” entering the building, matching witness statements, interviewing the man who owned the building and a number of details. With no tenants or occupants, it was most likely the place the League of Villains were headquartered at.

“We’re gonna launch a raid into it, and I figured you should be the first to know. Would you like to be part of it?” Tsukauchi offered excitedly, ready to close the book on this case. When he got no answer for a moment, he looked slightly confused for a moment. “All Might?”

“You are one hell of a pal, Tsukauchi.” All Might said, as steam began to build all around his body, before he bulked up rapidly. “When we hit the place, I’m letting those criminals know ‘I am here! To fight back!’”  
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The next 2 days that followed the Attack were not kind to Class A. Due to just how deadly and horrific the attack, Aizawa had issued a break even as the summer came to an end, with many required to see therapy, whether or not they showed any outward signs of the attack bothering them. Izuku was among them, and despite him feeling he was fine, went along with it anyway. What was bothering him wasn’t any attack by the Villains. Other then them taking Bakugou of course.

It was the dreams he was having.

As the time to meet with Aizawa and discuss his “Quirk” drew closer, his dreams were becoming more surreal and strange. 

On this night, he found himself, walking along in a park, but everything was wrong. The trees were black and silver, looking not quite like flesh, but not quite like metal. He blinked in confusion, feeling the warm summer against his face, but the ground felt cold and muddy. As he walked, the ground sucked at and stuck into his feet. The path beneath was a blackened slime, tendrils and tentacles erupting from it, grasping at the air, only to retreat down below again. What he assumed was the sun was high in the sky.

But no sun he had ever seen was black and purple.

He blinked in confusion, looking around. There was no one else in the park today, and he felt Venom….differently then he was used to. Something was wrong with the Symbiote. He felt more intrusive, more locked in around him, like something had frightened him. Izuku looked around again in confusion, before noticing right in front of him appeared to be Ochako.

Was she there before?

He put his hands in his pockets, and approached her. She was in a flowing cyan and light yellow summer dress and small white jacket. He could recognize her instantly by her hair style, that flowing brown chocolate-colored hair flowing in the air. He began to walk towards her, a small smile on his face, as tendrils and biomass stuck to the bottom of his feet, clinging tightly, unearthly screams of rage and hunger sounding from below as he approached.

As the wind blew by, he thought he heard whispers of some kind, in an alien tongue he thought felt familiar, but couldn’t place their origin. He brushed it off, as Uraraka turned, beaming with pride. 

“He was so unexpected, but I’m glade we had him.” She said, indicating the stroller before them. Izuku’s eyes widened. “I think he has your smile.”

Within was a writhing mass of tentacles and fangs, black with spots of red all along it’s tentacles and mass, white eyes glaring out as it shrieked in hunger and rage. A man’s voice laughed behind them, as something approached. Izuku turned suddenly, to see another Symbiote, red and black, tendrils whipping out from it’s body, looking like a skinned corpse given life. It’s teeth and mouth were blackened, looking like it’s face had ripped itself open to create a mouth. It held out bone-like arms out to it’s sides, posing theatrically. Midoriya felt his breath catch in his throat at the sight.

It was something he had never wanted to see. Venom’s kid from the past images and memories he had shared. A creature apparently blasphemous to every last Klyntar.

“Hey hey, pops!” The being hissed in mock happiness. “Glad you could make it! Thought we’d have a nice family reunion. The little guy’s big siblings are all here!”

The ground erupted beneath them, blackened and dark blue limbs exploded outwards, green and purple tendrils of flesh wrapping around, clawing and pulling at Izuku as Uraraka continued to laugh cheerfully, countless inhuman faces pulling close, shrieking and roaring as they pulled him down into the abyss, cursing in inhuman tongues and languages into his ears.

The last thing Izuku heard was the giggling laughter of the Flayed One. “You really think you of all people could have a family?”

Izuku bolted up from his bed in a cold sweat, breathing hard, before holding his hand over his mouth and running to the bathroom. Slamming the door shut behind, he let lose into the toilet with what was left in his stomach, groaning in confusion and misery.

“Ven, was that your weird idea of trying to set me and Uraraka up?” Izuku asked tiredly, rubbing his eye. “or, was that your dream? Either way, this is getting weird.”

“No! I don’t know what that was!” The Symbiote claimed, sounding all too defensive.

“It was very...Symbiote-inspired.” Izuku mumbled, as he went into the kitchen and prepared a glass of water to clear out his mouth. “And I keep getting sick when I get up. Is everything alright in there?”

“I don’t know.” The Symbiote said simply.

“Alright, we’ll talk tomorrow about this.” Izuku remarked, rubbing his eyes as he washed his mouth out with water and spat in the sink, before taking another drink.  
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Izuku tapped away on his phone, sighing to himself as the train sped along. It was a quiet day, the day he was to finally come clean to Aizawa, All Might and whoever else was involved. He wasn’t sure how to feel, even now. Coming clean after having to keep so many secrets was a relief, maybe he could even get help and advise going forward on these weird dreams, since Venom was acting odd lately. Perhaps it was the villain attack making it rethink it’s life ever since then. Izuku couldn’t say, Venom had been quiet and taciturn ever since the dreams had started.

He got off and headed into UA. Given what had happened recently, there weren’t many classes in session, and the place was almost completely emptied out. It was strange and unsettling. He had never seen the place so empty. He made his way in, moving through the emptied halls, until he found the office room Aizawa had told him to meet them in. He took a deep breath and opened the door, stepping in.

There, was All Might in his muscled form, Godzillo in human form, but no sign of Aizawa. Izuku looked in confusion for a moment, before a zipper sounded, and he rose from the sleeping bag behind them, shaking off his bag and rubbing the sleep out of his eye.

“Alright, Izuku, tell us, from the beginning, everything that went down with Venom.” Aizawa remarked, grabbing a chair and sitting down, before gesturing for Izuku to take a seat of his own.

“Just tell them what you know, alright kid?” Godzillo stated calmly and reassuringly. 

Taking a deep breath, Izuku started when he had first met Venom, going over everything, from the entrance exams, Venom going off on his own and becoming Jet Black, and up to the fight with Muscular and all. He thought he would stop or hesitate for a moment while talking, but once he started it all just came out naturally.

Aizawa and All Might listened patiently, both their face impassive as they listened. Izuku finished, taking a deep breath and a sigh of relief as he finally explained everything. Aizawa sat there for a moment, processing everything for a moment, before turning to Godzillo, giving a weary, heavy-lidded stare.

“How do you factor into this?” He asked, not used to seeing Godzillo dirty his claws in the stranger aspects of Hero work.

“It was around 2 or so years ago, when a branch of the HSC came to me, needing my island for research,” Godzillo explained. “Ogasawara was dedicated to training and researching Kaiju Quirks, and this branch wanted to study...something else.”

He sighed to himself, his face impassive, but his eyes narrowed with guilt and misery. “I didn’t know what that entailed, until this Taskforce began to take more and more control of things. Claiming it was for the defense of Earth.”

“And you went against that?” Aizawa replied, sounding slightly disbelieving.

“Nothing is inherently evil. They claimed these Symbiotes were evil to the core, but I never believed that. There were….bad attitudes towards me and my kin back in the day,” Nakajima explained, taking a deep breath. “Yet, someone thought I could bring about co-existence in the age of Quirks, and I want to pay it forward.”

“You think Venom can do that?” Aizawa asked.

“Depends on him.”

“Alright, let’s hear from him then.” All Might declared, tapping his fingertips together slightly. “I think we deserve to hear from him. He’s an equal party too.”

Venom morphed over Izuku’s body, stretching his fangs and claws for a moment, before looking among the three pros. “What do you wish to know then?”

“I have a whole class full of students, and a creature I can’t control with my Erasure.” Aizawa said bluntly, looking wrathfully at the Symbiote. “How can I trust you not to attack my students like you did those criminals.”

“I was hungry, I needed a chemical, and I didn’t know how to get it.” Venom explained, gesturing with his right claw. “If I didn’t eat, the brains, I would’ve withered, or had to start devouring Izuku from the inside. We stopped immediately when we found chocolate could replenish and energize me without eating others.”

“So, you came here and were inspired by Young Midoriya to be a Hero yourself, despite your past.” All Might remarked, tapping his chin slightly. “I think that’s worth keeping around.”

Aizawa nodded slightly, deep in thought for a moment. All Might looked slightly nervous at the other teacher, not sure what he was thinking or about to do. Godzillo didn’t react, merely staring straight ahead, looking more like a statue then anything else, as Venom shifted nervously. The Symbiote had never thought a normal human could be so intimidating.

Finally, he spoke, breaking up the silence. “You saved my life at USJ, and your fellow students both there and at the Forest Camp. I don’t trust you, Venom, but Izuku seems to be a good influence, and I wouldn’t leave anyone at the mercy of government agents. You can stay, together.”

Izuku sighed in relief, almost beginning to cry, as Venom’s face remained impassive. It was such a relief to hear that he could still have the chance to be a hero, Quirk or not, to follow his dreams.

“But I need to know, we all need to, if anything else is going on.” Aizawa stated coldly, looking Venom right in the eyes, as though seeing through everything else. “Whatever happens to you, effects Midoriya, and I have to know for his sake.”

Venom was surprised, almost uncertain if Aizawa had known all along, or could just read his body language to figure it out, but either way

“I am not sure what to say.” Venom began, as Izuku did a double take, raising an eyebrow within the Symbiote. “This has become very complicated.”

Nakajima looked at the Symbiote, looking slightly confused himself. “Venom, you’re among friends now. Remember, if something dangerous were to happen, the Agency could get to you all the easier.”

The Symbiote nodded. He wasn’t sure what to say for a moment, chewing over his words for a long time. This was even more complicated then he would’ve liked. Finally, the Symbiote spoke.

“I am with child once more.” Venom declared. “A new Symbiote shall be born soon, and I am not sure how to deal with this.”

“What?!” Izuku shouted within his head, completely blindsided and horrified.

“What.” Aizawa and All Might both stated, deadpan and unbelieving.

Nakajima could only sigh to himself, rubbing his forehead. “Yare yare daze.”  
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After finishing up with what they could do to prepare, including Nakajima getting in contact with the son of a friend named Ren, Izuku was on his way home, still locked in stunned silence over the whole thing. He walked along the streets, before stopping. Venom seemed surprised at first, before speaking again. He had hoped Izuku would’ve figured it out sooner on his own.

“Do you wish to talk?” He asked.

“In private.” Izuku remarked, some other pedestrians looking and raising eyebrows at his strange behavior, before hurrying away.

They made their way into an alleyway, before Venom morphed over his body, and climbed up the side one of the apartments, claws smashing into the side and pulling him upwards faster then anyone could see or notice, before jumping and flipping onto the top, and looking out over the city.

“So, we gonna talk?” Venom whispered to himself, trying to sound as if this was just casual conversation between friends.

“Don’t act like that, after what you’ve pulled!” Izuku snapped, Venom flinching in surprise. “You have all this going on, and didn’t tell me?”

“Couldn’t! You had too much already!” Venom remarked in a panic.

“And you think hiding a weird Alien pregnancy was gonna help?” Izuku demanded. “You were just saying we keep no secrets!”

Venom nodded. “I just don’t know what to do. My species do not raise children. I worry for the future. I worry if I will fail again.”

Izuku took a deep breath, even with the confines of Venom’s own face. “You told me earlier that Symbiotes tend to fight their children. You’re trying to change that. Not have another Carnage.”

“Yes!” Venom declared, his fanged maw widening. “I just don’t know how to do it.”

After a moment of looking over the city, Izuku spoke again. “We’ll work on it. First will be finding them the right host.”

“I must share something else.” Venom stated. “I have to remain bonded to you. Leaving can damage the child, but so can stress in battle.”

“Did Muscular…?” Izuku began, sounding worried.

“No. The Spawnling is fine.” Venom replied. “But we cannot risk it. We must be weary of further conflict.”

“We’ll be off for a while, should be plenty of time for junior to...do whatever you guys do.” Izuku muttered, as they extended a tentacle out and began to swing back to home. “But make sure you tell me this if it happens again!”

Venom was determined as ever to bring a Symbiote into the world, one who would have a chance to be the type of hero he had only dreamed of until recently, and wouldn’t become anything like it’s siblings in the past.  
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The next day, Izuku stopped by the hospital to see Jirou, Hagakure and the others who hadn’t been discharged yet. They apparently had gotten a bad case of smoke and gas inhalation that had damaged their lungs and throat. Visiting here took his mind off some of things he had to deal with, like what was going to happen to Bakugou, his own failures and the weird relationship he was going to have with the Symbiote child.

“A Spawnling is mine and mine alone, but traces of your DNA and all effect it’s appearance and such,” Venom had explained the night before. “It’s not exactly like how fathers and mothers work, but it’s still important to us.”

They still hadn’t explained things to his mom, which bothered him, but Mister Nakajima had insisted. As far as things went, the three heroes, and Midoriya himself knew about this, but no one else. Any more risked their lives from the Agency, as well as a leak that could oust Midoriya’s secret, and potentially put his family and the new Symbiote in danger. He wanted to tell about Tsu knew now, but decided against it for the moment.

Visiting and seeing his friends after so long would be good. Even if the Symbiote insisted his friends would make for good hosts.

As he made his way through the lobby, dressed in a beat-up sweat shirt and jeans. Given how the Muscular fight had gone, Izuku was counting every blessing he hadn’t ended up here, in critical condition. One more reason to be thankful for the Symbiote.

As he made his way to the elevator, he rounded the corner and almost ran into Kirishima and Todoroki, talking about something in hushed tones with each other. Kirishima jumped in surprise at Midoriya’s approach, while Shoto merely released a surprised ‘Oh!’. He almost jumped back in surprise, before giving a small wave to the two.

“Oh, hey Kirishima, Todoroki, you two here to see the others?” He asked cheerfully.

The two looked between themselves for a moment, as if worried over a secret, before Kirishima gave a non-committal nod. “Yeeeah, sure. That, but uh, something else.”

“What sort of something else?” Izuku asked, curious. The two usually didn’t hang out together. Something was off, and it was starting to nag at him.

Kirishima seemed to want to carefully push the subject, but Shoto didn’t seem to pick up on that. “We were discussing whether to launch our own mission to save Bakugou.”

“Todoroki, come on man!” Kirishima yelled in exasperation, smacking himself in the forehead. “We aren’t supposed to just come out and say it.”

“Sorry.” He replied deadpan.

“Listen, I know you probably are worried about the rules, but...” Kirishima began to hurriedly explain.

“What’s the plan?” Midoriya asked instead.

“Wait...what? You’re interested?” Kirishima asked in surprised, reeling back in surprise. Even Shoto raised a surprised eyebrow, before quietly nodding.

“Yeah, a bit.” Midoriya responded, as Venom appeared from his shoulder. “We’ve been talking ourselves about how to do it.”

“Wow, awesome, we’ll explain it on the elevator then!” Kirishima said with a triumphant grin.

Midoriya was about to follow them in as the door opened, before speaking up. “Listen, it can’t be violent, my...Quirk...is a little fragile from the fighting still.”

“We got that covered.” Kirishima said with a mischievous glint in his eye, as Midoriya followed them inside.  
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Shigaraki watched Bakugou closely, as he was strapped in tight the chair and restrained, bag still over his head as they prepared him. Kurogiri had moved through a number of locations to get the equipment and throw off any trails that might identify them, before finally coming back to the bar that would serve as their barracks and headquarters. 

X whipped the bag off the Hero-Rookiee’s head, before stepping back as the rest of the team watched closely. Shigaraki rose from his seat, looking around.

“So, no one picked up the other ones?” He asked the rest.

“I think Muscular did try. Y’know, tried.” X explained, still eyeing Bakugou with suspicion. 

“Is that a problem, Tomura Shigaraki?” Kurogiri asked, worried over his younger counterpart’s reaction.

“No, I just have more questions for him.” Shigaraki remarked nonchalantly as he approached, before directing his words to Bakugou. “So, Wannabe Hero Bakugou, can you answer a question for me.”

“Depends.” Bakugou answered.

“On what?”

“On when you take a swan dive off the nearest high rise.” Bakugou spat back, sneering in barely contained disdain for the group. “Like I’d answer any of your shitty questions.”

“Oh, you hurt me so bad. Long journal entry on that one.” Shigaraki remarked with mock pain in his voice, folding his hands behind him as he continued. “Now, where is Izuku and his Symbiote?”

“Deku? His Quirk? How am I supposed to know?” Bakugou balked in surprise. “Do I look like his boyfriend.”

X and Twice both looked ready to speak, before Shigaraki shot them a glare, both falling silent with the rest. He turned back to Bakugou, left eye twitching slightly. “You’re his childhood friend, you know where he lives, right?”

“I have no idea, now shove it!” Bakugou protested. He definitely wanted to bash Izuku’s lights out and toss him in the trash, but he’d be damned if he started squealing on people.

“This is your last chance, where is his Symbiote?” Shigaraki demanded, voice rising in rage.

“It’s a Quirk, what are you on about?” Bakugou demanded in annoyance. It had to be where he was.

“Oh, that’s what you think, what you honestly believe. Cute. Stupid, but cute.” Shigaraki remarked with a chuckle, turning away from Bakugou.

Before he could ask what was happening or what Shigaraki meant, he suddenly snapped around, growing in size and musculature, as tall as Izuku’s Venom, slimy and silver, drops of red sprinkled into it’s body as it stomped a foot down.

“Where is he?!” Riot roared, inches from his face, fangs glistening like knives. “Where is Venom?!”

“Holy fucking shit! That’s the ugliest looking thing I’ve ever seen!” Bakugou yelled in shock, for one of the few moments in his life, utterly horrified. “FUCK!”

Riot gripped his head, carefully pulling one finger up, but pulling his head back, as he glared down at the pathetic little human. “You think Venom is a Quirk? Is that the lies he fed you? Hmph. You’ve been deceived. My kind are worse then simple Quirks.”

The Silver Symbiote stepped back, claws flexing and twitching slightly, as the others looked at him in horror and surprise. It was an exact copy of Venom, except for the coloration, they could’ve been twins. No one said a word, as Riot glared down at the stubborn Hero Student. “I have no more questions or use for you, but Shigaraki is not finished quite yet.”

He shrank back and twisted about, sinking back beneath the folds of Shigaraki’s cloths and his flesh, as the Villain took a deep breath. “Now, where were we? Oh right, my next question, that you will answer. And I’m going to like what I hear. Because Riot is getting hungry.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one came quick, but it's mostly because I didn't have to follow as much of the Manga before, rework events and figure out what can stay and what can be left behind on the cutting room. With this being largely original ideas sprinkled with stuff from the Manga, I could whip this boi out faster.
> 
> As for the big reveal, I actually am hitting myself for not setting it up earlier other then a small line in the last chapter. I remember that, one of the best ideas from Donny Cates' run of Venom is the idea that Symbiotes spawn children as a unconscious/subconscious response to coming threats (Carnage forming due to Thanos, Toxin due to the Avengers Dissembled, Sleeper to combat the threat of Grendel awakening, etc). I legit wanted it, but realized one of my biggest fumbles wasn't giving it more set up, but anywho.
> 
> Venom technically shouldn't be pregnant yet, but because of the coming threat of All Might's retirement and the instability, it happened faster then even he expected. It should be obvious who the next little Sym-baby is, based on the dream sequence and all, and he'll probably pop out the oven after All Might's battle and the days to follow.


End file.
